This prize is designed to honor undergraduate scholarship in Sociology by recognizing the best paper(s) authored or coauthored by undergraduate Junior Sociology majors.

Competition is open to undergraduate Junior Sociology majors. The submission must be written or substantially revised in the context of a course or independent study taught by or supervised by a Sociology department instructor. The paper may be a research paper, a theory paper, or an honors thesis. It may be on any topic. Coauthored or group papers are eligible.

The award is typically divided between the best thesis and the best other paper. Winner(s) are selected by the Undergraduate Affairs Committee, who have discretion over the number and composition of the awards. At their discretion, the award may not be offered every year.

The award was established by Mrs. Alice B. Weatherly and Mrs. Ruth Weatherly Gray in honor of former IU Sociology professor Ulysses Grant Weatherly, the longest serving chair of the Sociology department. Professor Weatherly held the position for 35 years, from 1899 until his retirement in 1935.