Posts Tagged ‘Education’

University of Wyoming Geological Museum to be Closed

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009

The University of Wyoming has decided to include the Geological Museum in the programs to be cut as a result of a decrease in funding by the state. 45 people across the University lost their jobs, including the Director of the Geological Museum Brent Breithaupt and the part-time museum secretary. This is being noted as a University administration decision and not one by the Department of Geology and Geophysics.

The museum was founded 122 years ago, shortly after the university itself was founded. One of the first curators was William Harlow Reed, one of the railroad workers who discovered the first dinosaurian fossils at Como Bluff, WY. The current museum building was built under the direction of Samuel H. “Doc” Knight, for whom the S. H. Knight Geology building is named. The museum’s physical connection to the Geology Building allows it to be routinely incorporated into laboratory and classroom activities. In addition, public and private school classes frequently tour the museum as part of their curricula.

The museum houses many fossils of interest to children and researchers alike, including one of the only mounted skeletons of Apatosaurus (”Brontosaurus”) which recently was re-mounted with its tail in the air. Visitors from across the country come to see “Big Al” the Allosaurus as well as numerous other exhibits. Several holotype specimens are on display and have been available for research. Other specimens currently under study include the Columbian mammoth (ancient DNA) and microvertebrates from the Mesaverde Fm. A working preparation station has been integrated into the museum, and visitors can ask questions while watching fossils being prepared.

The Collection of Fossil Vertebrates is separate from the museum, and is not affected by these cuts at this time.

The Geological Museum will close its doors to the general public on July 1, 2009.

There is an online petition to keep the Museum open at: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/geomuseum/index.html

[Adapted from the ipetitions page]

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National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation Awards $12,000 in Scholarships

Tuesday, June 16th, 2009

The National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation (NGWREF) awarded a total of $10,000 to eight students from its Len Assante Scholarship Fund, Foundation President Alan Eades, CWD/PI, announced today.

Breana Hashman of West Chester, Pennsylvania, won the Past President’s Award—the top scholarship presented to the most qualified of the applicants. Hashman, who is studying geology at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, received $2,000 toward her education.

The other recipients are:

  • Matthew J. Palmer of Fort Worth, Texas, $2,000 for the Ora Lyons Scholarship named in honor of a former distinguished National Ground Water Association (NGWA) member; Palmer will attend Tarrant County College in Fort Worth to study hydrology
  • Peter J. Laciano of New Providence, New Jersey, $1,000; Laciano will attend Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, to study environmental science and geology
  • Amber C. Rolader of Bostwick, Georgia, $1,000; Rolader attends the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, studying environmental science
  • Crystal L. Nickel of Lake Mills, Wisconsin, $1,000; Nickel attends the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire studying geology and hydrogeology
  • Laura A. Hempel of Tallahassee, Florida, $1,000; Hempel attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, studying environmental science
  • Caroline L. Vallelian of Argyle, Texas, $1,000; Vallelian plans to study environmental science
  • David C. Mills of Janesville, Wisconsin, $1,000; Mills attends the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh studying hydrogeology

NGWREF also awarded $2,000 in scholarships to four students for their paper presentations made at the 2009 Ground Water Summit that took place in April. The $500 scholarships are given in honor of the late Dr. Robert Farvolden, former senior science counsel for NGWA.

The scholarships were awarded based on the quality of the presentation, content (including contribution to ground water science, engineering, management, or policy), and demonstrated insight on the chosen topic.

The winners are:

  • Marcel Sousa of the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, for “A Systematic Approach for Assessing the Potential Impacts of Beneficial Management Practices on Wells Affected by Nonpoint Sources of Contamination”
  • Hooray Ajani of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, for “Quantifying Spatial and Temporal Variability of Mountain System Recharge in Semiarid Catchments”
  • Danielle Moss, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, for “Introduction of Relatively High Conductivity Material and the Effects on TCE Degradation and Remediation”
  • Megan Smith of the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, for “Polymer-Enhanced Remediation Techniques for More Effective Treatment of Heterogeneous Aquifers.”

This marks the 32nd year in which scholarship awards have been made. Since its inception, the scholarship program has supported 179 students in their pursuit of education.    

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AGI Accepting Applications for 2009 Award for Excellence in Earth Science Teaching

Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

The American Geological Institute (AGI) and the AGI Foundation are accepting applications for the Edward C. Roy, Jr. Award for Excellence in Earth Science Teaching. Given annually, this award recognizes one classroom teacher from kindergarten to eighth grade for his or her leadership and innovation in earth science education.

The winner will receive a $2,500 prize and an additional grant of $1,000 to attend the 2009 Geological Society of America annual meeting in Portland, Oregon. To be eligible for this year’s competition, applications must be postmarked by May 31, 2009.

This award is named in honor of Dr. Edward C. Roy, Jr., who was an energetic and dedicated supporter of earth science education. He served as Past President of AGI, chaired the AGI Education Advisory Committee, and received both the Ian Campbell Medal and the Heroy Distinguished Service award. In addition, he served as the Gertrude and Walter Pyron Distinguished Professor of Geology at Trinity University, as Dean of the Division of Sciences, Mathematics, and Engineering, and as Vice President for Academic Affairs. Roy was also appointed Chair of the Texas Earth Science Task Force by the Commissioner of the Texas Education Agency.

To learn more about competition requirements, application procedures, and deadlines, visit http://www.agiweb.org/education/awards/ed-roy/

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Donation from Houston Couple Establishes Departmental Chair in Iowa State University’s Geology Department

Monday, May 4th, 2009

AMES, Iowa—A new gift from Tom and Evonne Smith has the opportunity to transform the department of geological and atmospheric sciences in Iowa State University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS).
            
The Houston couple has established the Smith Family Foundation Departmental Chair in Geology to further enhance the mission of the department through a $2 million endowment.
            
“This gift will provide us with unprecedented opportunities to advance the teaching and research missions of the department,” said Carl Jacobson, professor and chair of the department of geological and atmospheric sciences. Jacobson will serve as the Smith Family Foundation Departmental Chair in Geology.
            
The endowed department chair will provide annual earnings that will be used by the chair to support activities within the department. The Smith Family Foundation Departmental Chair in Geology is just the second such endowed position at Iowa State. The funds will be used for such items as supporting cutting-edge research, recruitment of world-renowned faculty and attracting top students.
            
“During my years at Iowa State I formed life-long friendships and to be in close proximity to outstanding faculty members was a wonderful, unique opportunity,” said Tom Smith. “Evonne and I hope that this gift will help establish the department as a world-class center of learning in the geological sciences.”
 
“We’re extremely grateful for Tom and Evonne’s commitment to create this first endowed department chair position in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences,” said LAS Dean Michael Whiteford. “Their appreciation for the education Tom received as a student at Iowa State speaks highly of the quality instruction offered then and today.”
            
Tom Smith holds both bachelor’s (1968) and master’s (1971) degrees in geology from Iowa State. The Smiths were the founders and former owners of Seismic Micro-Technology in Houston. The couple has previously provided $370,000 for improvements at the Carl F. Vondra Geology Field Camp near Shell, Wyo. Tom Smith is also a member of the LAS Dean’s Advisory Council and a past recipient of the Citation of Merit Award, the college’s top alumni honor.
            
The Smith gift will generate additional funding for items the department was unable to fund in previous years.
            
“One of the great benefits of the new gift from the Smiths is that the distributions can be used broadly for faculty and student support,” Jacobson said. “We should be able to bring in distinguished scientists as part of our seminar series and expose them to our outstanding department.
            
Jacobson has worked with the department’s faculty members to outline additional opportunities including lab equipment, graduate student scholarships and matching funds for national research grants.
            
The gift creating the Smith Family Foundation Departmental Chair in Geology is part of Campaign Iowa State: With Pride and Purpose, the university’s $800 million fundraising effort. More than $670 million in gifts and future commitments for facilities and student, faculty and programmatic support have been made to Campaign Iowa State.

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UConn adding Geoscience Major

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

Beginning with the fall 2009 semester, the University of Connecticut will be adding a major in geology to the Bachelor of Science degree. The Department of Geology and Geophysics had been dissolved in 2004. Since that time students were only able to receive a geology degree through the Individulaized Major Program.

The Center for Integrative Geosciences at UConn was formed in 2005. It consisted of classes and professors from many disciplines that overlapped with the geosciences. Many students continued to take geology courses and wanted to pursue a geology degree through the Individulaized Major Program and the Center for Integrative Geosciences, thus it was deemed it necessary to reinstate geology as an official major.

With this change, it will be easier for students to declare a geosciences major and the department will be able to actively recruit students.

To learn more about geosciences at the University of Connecticut please visit http://www.geosciences.uconn.edu/.

 

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AGI Announces a New, Global Earth Science Week Contest

Wednesday, September 17th, 2008

The American Geological Institute (AGI) is sponsoring a new, fourth contest in conjunction with both Earth Science Week and The International Year of Planet Earth (IYPE).

In addition to the Photo, Essay, and Visual Art contests offered each year as part of Earth Science Week, a new global photography contest, “Exploring Earth Science Around the World” has been developed. This competition is open to anyone worldwide with images eligible from anywhere around the world – all in celebration of IYPE.

Entrants are encouraged to submit images that highlight the beauty and power of the earth processes. Pictures of landforms, bodies of water, weather, and more that depict the geosciences exploration and research that is occurring across the planet as part of IYPE are ideal.

To learn more about this contest, including rules for submissions, deadlines, and prizes, visit http://www.earthsciweek.org/contests/iypephotocontest/.

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AGI Announces Release of 2008 Earth Science Week Kit

Wednesday, September 10th, 2008

The key educational support product for Earth Science Week 2008 (October 12-18) is the Toolkit that enables teachers, students, and the public to explore this year’s theme “No Child Left Inside.” The 2008 edition of this resource is now available through the American Geological Institute (AGI).

The 2008 Toolkit contains several resources developed by AGI, including the new editions of the Earth Science Week Activity Calendar and classroom poster with activities suitable for all ages provided by AGI, its Member Societies and other organizations. In addition to these traditional Toolkit publications, this year AGI’s education department teamed with Walden Media to create a “Journey 3-D” educator guide with 3-D glasses to explore where science fact meets science fiction in the movie “Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D.”

Several other organizations contributed materials for inclusion in the Toolkits. The U. S. Geological Survey provided a 3-D geosciences poster. NASA supplied a CD-ROM of Earth Observations from Space. NOAA provided climate literacy information while ESRI included a CD-ROM on GIS technology and activities. A field notebook with an activity from Rite in the Rain is also part of each Toolkit.

These items and much more can be found in each Earth Science Week Toolkit aimed at engaging the students and general public in exploring the geosciences. The Toolkits are available for the cost of shipping and handling ($6.95 in the United States). Bulk pricing is available. To order, visit http://www.earthsciweek.org/materials/.

Earth Science Week is an annual event held the second week of October to promote an understanding and appreciation of the earth sciences. It is coordinated by the American Geological Institute with generous support from the U.S. Geological Survey, the AAPG Foundation, and the National Park Service. To learn more about this event, please visit http://www.earthsciweek.org/.

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