honors

Honors and Recognition

NCSCE welcomes the opportunity to recognize the work of the many people who encourage greater civic engagement and the improvement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education for all students. To this end, NCSCE has created programs and awards to honor educators, administrators, students, and members of the public.

The William E. Bennett Award for Extraordinary Contributions to Citizen Science

The William E. Bennett Award for Extraordinary Contributions to Citizen Science was established by NCSCE and named in honor of its first recipient for his lifetime contributions to citizen science. The first award was presented to its namesake at a ceremony on Capitol Hill on March 31, 2009. The William E. Bennett Award is given annually to an individual and a team whose SENCER and other related activities have made exemplary and extraordinary contributions to citizen science.

The 2010 Bennett Award was given to a team of educators from Butler University who have been leaders on campus and in the SENCER community. Team members included Joseph Kirsch, professor of chemistry, Donald Braid, director of the Center for Citizenship and Community; Margaret Brabant, professor of political science; and Robert Holm, director of the Butler Institute for Research and Scholarship.

In 2011, the individual honored was Dr. Catherine Hurt Middlecamp, the director of the Chemistry Learning Center and the chair of the Integrated Liberal Studies Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Jim Speer and the SENCER Student Leadership Team of Indiana State University, recipients of the group honor, have done tremendous work on Indiana State’s campus. The Team includes Lauren Adams, M. Ross Alexander, Dustin Blaszcyk, Chase DuPont, Elise Hobbs, Adriahnna Lehman, Emily Pugh, Dorothy Rosene, Peter Rosene, and Julie Whitaker.

The 2012 honorees were Marion Field Fass of Beloit College (individual award) and faculty from Roosevelt University (team, pictured above).The awards were announced during the Capitol Hill Poster Session in the Rayburn Building on March 13, during which Dr. Robert Seiser represented the Roosevelt University team during the presentation of the team award. The individual Bennett award was presented to Dr. Marion Field Fass during the 2012 SENCER Summer Institute at Santa Clara University. Read more here.

The SENCER Leadership Fellows Program

The Leadership Fellows program offers educators and administrators who have been involved in the SENCER project the opportunity for greater involvement in the SENCER initiative and allows us to recognize the hard work of those who have developed strong programs on campus. This program broadens the impact of individual SENCER activities and allows us to access the expertise and advice of our alumni on a greater scale.

Fellows serve 18-month terms, and are asked to identify specific activities that will become the foci of their Fellowship. Ideally, each Fellow commits to: (1) promoting wider campus adoption of SENCER principles in undergraduate STEM courses through presentations, seminars, and informal discussions; (2) guiding the development of at least one additional SENCER project/course on campus; (3) engaging and mentoring other faculty members (and students who intend to be teachers) in implementing SENCER approaches; and (4) connecting with and supporting regional activities, where feasible and appropriate.

Fellows are elected twice each year following submission of an application and review of project plans by the National Fellowship Board. For more information on the Leadership Fellows program, please visit the program's webpage.

More Information

Bennett Award Nomination Process and Deadlines

To nominate an individual or team, please send a letter that will allow the review committee to assess the individual or team’s contributions to citizen science. A CV for the nominated individual/team members should be included, and up to two supporting letters of support may be submitted but are not required.

Deadline to submit nominations for consideration: February 28, 2013

Leadership Fellow Nominations and Applications