The Deviant of the Year Awards, or DotY as it has been nicknamed, was first run in November 2006 by `timmy64, =robinism, `Tepara, and `junoknight. The awards were designed in mind to congratulate those who committed themselves to making the community on deviantART a better place. Despite some hitches and controversies along the way, the initial run was a success, and in 2007, the awards returned, with some minor changes, and minus `Tepara, who removed herself due to other committments.
Also in 2007, the team expanded to encompass twelve people, nine belonging to a panel that helped decide the nominees for the major category, Deviant of the Year. In 2008, we welcome `Tepara back to the team, and farewell =robinism. We thank her for all her effort she put into the awards. We also farewell the nine panel members from 2007, and thank them for their tireless work on the team.