NEERS AWARDS

NEERS Occasional Awards

The Stickleback Award

This is a special award given at the conclusion of a NEERS meeting. It is given to the NEERS member attending the meeting who, in the opinion of the previous award winner, meets the following criteria and is most worthy. The criteria are (all must be met):

Distinguises her/his self in dancing until the end of the music after the banquet
Attendance at the first presentation the next morning
Exemplary service to NEERS

 It is only given if someone fulfills the criteria, so it is not necessarily given each meeting.

The award consists of a cherished copy of the book "The Life Cycle of a Stickleback" by Philip Parker, Illustrated by Jackie Harland, published by the Bookwright Press, 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016 in 1988. It includes a discussion of the stickleback's "zig-zag" dance. The book was given to NEERS by member Cindy Delpapa in 1998 specifically to establish this award. The book remains in the possession of the award winner to savor their achievement. It is their responsibility to bring it to the next NEERS meeting.

The Graying Gracefully Award

The Graying Gracefully Award was initiated in 2001 and is awarded at the discretion of the President to the senior scientist who gives an exceptionally thoughtful and inspiring presentation at a NEERS meeting. The award consists of an old copy of ‘You’re only old once' by Dr. Seuss. The winner’s name is written in the front of the book and the book is passed to the next winner when the prize is next awarded. This award is given out at the discretion of the President and need not be awarded every meeting.

NEERS Professional Awards

NEERS Achievement Award.

This award was established to recognize people who "have made significant contributions over a period of years to estuarine science, education, conservation, or management"; recipients need not be members of NEERS. This award was approved at the Fall 1998 meeting. It was first presented to Scott Nixon at the Spring 2000 meeting in Portland, Maine.

The award consists of a plaque and a $500 prize. The selected recipient shall accept the award in person at a NEERS meeting and give a short paper at the meeting or speech at the Awards dinner. NEERS pays the travel costs to attend the meeting and awards a plaque. It is anticipated that this will be awarded every couple of years.

Nominations should include a cover letter describing the candidate’s contributions to estuarine science, education, conservation, or management. Material detailing the record and significance of the candidate’s work are welcome in support of nominations. The Award Committee will keep nominations confidential.

Please send nominations to the Past-President who is Chair of the Awards Committee. The Achievement Awards Committee consists of at least three Past-Presidents of NEERS.

NEERS Student Awards

NEERS offers travel support and presentation prizes based on the quality of the scholarship and presentation at a NEERS meeting. To be eligible for one of the student presentation prizes, the student must be responsible for carrying out most of the work, must be present for their oral or poster presentation, and must be a NEERS member. All student prizes are presented at the Friday evening banquet of NEERS meetings to which award candidates are admitted free. The Student Award endowment Fund was established to generate income to fund all student prizes and travel awards. Five dollars of every Regular membership goes toward the student endowment fund.

Niering Travel Awards

We award three $100 awards for each NEERS meeting and two $500 awards for ERF meetings. Students must be presenting a paper and submit their name to the Treasurer at the time they submit their abstract to the meeting. The Treasurer selects the student awards by lottery.

Presentation awards

NEERS awards 4 prizes for presentations at meetings. All awardees receive a certificate and a $100 cash prize. Student awardees are:

• 1974 - 2002s
• 2002f - present

Buck Ketchum Prize for Best Graduate Student Oral Presentation

The Buck Ketchum Award is given to the best graduate student oral presentation at a NEERS meeting. The student must clearly be the senior contributing author but need not be the sole author of the paper.

At the Fall 1973 meeting, Bernie McAlice proposed the establishment of a $25 award for the best student paper. The "Student Award" was first given at the spring 1974 meeting, when two students tied for the award and split the $25 cash prize. In the fall of 1974 Jay Moore was commissioned to design a certificate for the Student Award. (see Appendix U for the original pencil sketch by Jay Moore for the "Student Award" certificate) Due to opposition from some members the Student Award was discontinued after the fall 1975 meeting. At the Fall 1982 meeting, Larry Spencer suggested that the award for best student paper be revived, and be named in honor of Bostwick H. Ketchum, who had died in July. Buck (as he was known) earned a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1938. After teaching at Long Island University for one year, he began, in 1940, a long and distinguished career at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, as Associate Marine Biologist, Marine Microbiologist, Senior Biologist, Senior Oceanographer, Senior Scientist, and finally Associate Director (1962-77). He joined NEERS in 1970 and was made an Honorary Member in 1973. The "Buck Ketchum Prize" for the Best Student Paper, consisting of a certificate and $50 cash, was first awarded at the Spring 1983 meeting. Initially, requirements were that the student must be sole author of the paper; in 1990 this requirement was revised such that "the student must clearly be the major contributing author."

Rankin Prize for Best Undergraduate Oral Presentation

The Rankin Prize is awarded for the best Undergraduate Oral Presentation at a NEERS meeting. The student must clearly be the senior contributing author but need not be the sole author of the paper.

At the Fall 1988 meeting Kathy Smith suggested creating a best undergraduate paper award, to be named the Stubby Rankin Prize, in honor of long-time NEERS member John S. Rankin, who had died in December, 1987. Stubby (the nickname originated in graduate school due to his stubborn nature) received a Ph.D. in Parasitology from Duke University in 1936. He taught at Amherst College for five years and the University of Washington for two years before moving to the University of Connecticut in 1943. Stubby founded (in 1956) and served as Director of UConn’s Marine Research Laboratory in Noank. He taught various courses in Invertebrate Zoology until his retirement in 1976, after which he served various administrative stints at AAAS, the Sea Education Association, and the National Science Foundation. Stubby joined NEERS in 1970 and was made an Honorary Member in 1981. The Stubby Rankin Prize for Best Undergraduate Student Paper was established by the Executive Committee at the Spring 1989 meeting, and was first presented at the Fall 1989 meeting by his widow and long-time NEERS meeting attendee, Julie Rankin. With the creation of the Rankin Prize for Best Undergraduate Student Paper, the Ketchum Prize became the award for the Best Graduate Student Paper. The cash value for the Rankin Prize was set at $50, with the Ketchum Prize remaining at $100. With development of the Warren Prize, the Rankin was awarded for Best Oral Presentation.

Dean Prize for Best Graduate Student Poster

The Dean Prize is awarded to the best graduate student poster at a NEERS meeting. The student must clearly be the senior contributing author but need not be the sole author of the paper.

At the spring 1996 meeting Alan Young suggested creating a third award, the David Dean Prize, for the best student poster. David Dean received a Ph.D. from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey in 1957. He taught for nine years at the University of Connecticut before moving to the University of Maine in 1966, where he served as Director of the Ira C. Darling Center from 1966 to 1979 and as Assistant Director/Director of the U. Maine Sea Grant Program from 1971 to 1979 before retiring in 1987. Dave was one of the founders of NEERS and the first elected (and only deceased) NEERS president. He joined NEERS in 1971, was made an Honorary Member in 1988, and died in 1991. The membership voted to establish the Dean Prize and to set the cash value of all three Prizes at $100. The Dean Prize for Best Student Poster was first awarded at the Fall 1996 meeting.

Warren Prize for Best Undergraduate Student Poster

The Warren Prize is awarded to the best undergraduate student poster at a NEERS meeting. The student must clearly be the senior contributing author but need not be the sole author of the paper.

The Scott Warren Prize was recommended by the Board and approved by the membership at the Fall 2002 meeting to honor Dr. Warren's long-term commitment to the Society and especially his dedication to inspiring undergraduate students at Connecticut College to present their research at NEERS meetings. Dr. Warren has been a professor at Connecticut College since 1970 where he has been an outspoken advocate of wetland and tidal marsh preservation. He has focused his research primarily on the wetlands and marshes of New England.

General Information on Presentation Prizes

There is no minimum number of students that must present for an award to be given. A prize is awarded if the judges agree that at least one presentation was outstanding enough quality to warrant special recognition. Each student is rated on specific criteria within broad categories of overall effectiveness, scientific content, and quality of presentation (Appendix I). The same standards are applied to graduate and undergraduate prizes. The student must clearly be the senior contributing author but need not be the sole author of the paper. Volunteers judge oral presentations and posters during the meeting. Members are asked to volunteer to judge when they pre-register for the meeting or when they arrive at the meeting. We try to have 3 judges per presentation and each judge is asked to evaluate no more than 5 presentations. Usually about 5 – 7 people volunteer during pre-registration, and we need about 10-15 judges. Assignments are made by the Local Organizing Committee and distributed before or at the meeting. Judges should not be asked to judge papers that are too close together in the oral session as they need time to fill out the forms between talks. Packages for the judges, with student assignments and evaluation sheets, will be available at the Registration desk. Organization and Judges forms are provided in Appendix I.

At the meeting, the judges fill out an evaluation form (Appendix I) and then caucus to decide upon the best presentation. The evaluation sheet is only a guide for the judges who make the final decision at the caucus. The evaluation forms will be distributed to the students after the awards are decided.