Announcements

The recipient of the 2024 W. Storrs Cole Memorial Research Award is Dr. Jonathan Schueth from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. This award was established to support research in invertebrate micropaleontology. It is given each year to a GSA Member or Fellow between 30 and 65 years of age who has published one or more significant papers on micropaleontology. Dr. Schueth’s proposal was entitled, A new statistical approach to solve the mystery of low nannofossil productivity over OAE2 (94 Ma). W. Storrs Cole was a GSA Fellow for 58 years and was one of the Society’s leading benefactors. He was also a member of the Cushman Foundation.

Cushman Foundation awards and grants honor established foraminiferal workers and support student and career advancement and research on foraminifera or related microorganisms. The Foundation serves our community and members by increasing accessibility, equity, and inclusion through our grants, fellowships, and awards. We provide financial support to our members to participate in meetings and workshops, and through our reduced membership rates for students and those in developing nations. For awards and grants, the CFFR selects awardees from all members of our community without discrimination in any way.

Unless otherwise indicated, application materials must be received by March 1, with decisions to be announced in April or May. The Board of Directors reserves the right to make no awards or to make awards that differ from the requested budget. The Board of Directors encourages awardees to submit their results to one of the Foundation’s publications. Details for each award and grant are available on our website at CushmanFoundation.org under the Awards & Grants tab.

The W. Storrs Cole Memorial Research Award was established to support research in invertebrate micropaleontology. It will be given each year to a GSA Member or Fellow between 30 and 65 years of age who has published one or more significant papers on micropaleontology. Funds cannot be used for work already accomplished, but recipients of a previous award may reapply if additional support is needed to complete their work.

The Johanna M. Resig Foraminiferal Research Fellowship is made possible by a gift from the estate of Johanna M. Resig, a lifelong specialist on Foraminifera and former editor of the Journal of Foraminiferal Research. The purpose of the fellowship is to recognize and forward the careers of outstanding doctoral candidates committed to the advancement of foraminiferal research. The fellowship is restricted to advanced doctoral candidates and is intended to provide major support for the awardee’s last 1–2 years of graduate research.

M. Ruth Todd (1913–1984) was a member of the original Joseph A. Cushman lab and the recipient of the first Cushman award (1980). She was a remarkable person, role model, and leader in foraminiferal research. The purpose of this internship grant created in her honor is to advance the careers of graduate students (M.S. and Ph.D.) and postdoctoral investigators studying micropaleontology. Undergraduates who are graduating and applying to a M.S. or Ph.D. program are also welcome to apply. The internship grant is intended to provide support to graduate students and postdoctoral investigators who seek an opportunity at another institution to further their knowledge and research interests on any aspect of fossil or living foraminifera and/or allied organisms. We encourage all qualified applicants, and especially invite those from groups underrepresented in science, to apply.

For graduate students and professional researchers wishing to ascertain their foraminiferal identifications, the Buzas Award for Travel (BAT) provides up to $2000.00 of support for graduate students or professionals to use the Cushman Collection of foraminifera. Housed in the National Museum of Natural History in Washington D. C., this collection is the largest in the world, having over 16,000 primary type specimens (holotypes and paratypes) and 200,000 secondary types. A trip to study the collection enhances the entire research project. The BAT award was established in 2017 by Dr. Martin A. Buzas, past Director and President of the Cushman Foundation, and his family.

The Cushman Foundation established its first Student Research Award in 1985 to honor the memory of Joseph A. Cushman. The award supports worthy Master’s and Doctoral Student research projects dealing with the systematics, biostratigraphy, paleoecology, and ecology of fossil or living foraminifera. Research on geochemistry using microfossils only as geochemical indicators is not funded; however, geochemistry that relates to any aspect of living or fossil foraminifera is fundable and should be explained. Current students with developed research projects in these areas are encouraged to apply for support. Applicants must be Cushman Foundation members at the time of application.

This Grant was established in 2004 in memory of Alfred R. Loeblich, Jr. and Helen Tappan. The Grant supports undergraduate and graduate student research on any aspect of living or fossil foraminifera or other protists, such as diatoms, coccolithophorids, dinoflagellates, acritarchs, or radiolaria. Research on geochemistry using microfossils only as geochemical indicators is not funded; however, geochemistry that relates to any aspect of living or fossil foraminifera is fundable and should be explained. Current students with developed research projects in these areas are encouraged to apply for support. Applicants must be Cushman Foundation members at the time of application.

The William V. Sliter Research Award supports graduate student research on Mesozoic and Cenozoic foraminifera. A letter reporting the progress of the awardee and use of the Foundation’s funds is expected within two years after the award. The Board of Directors hopes that the awardees will submit their results to one of the Foundation’s publications, and in any case, requests that acknowledgment of the award be included in any thesis, dissertation or publication that results from work supported by an award of the Foundation.

This award supports current undergraduate, masters’ and doctoral students, and those who have been awarded the Ph.D. no more than one year past the application deadline. The award funds those who wish to present the results of their theses or dissertations at Foundation-approved professional meetings or workshops in either an oral or poster session. It also funds students to attend workshops. The research projects or workshops should address microfossils or the organisms that make them. Applicants may receive one travel award per calendar year. Travel to present or learn about research on geochemistry using microfossils only as geochemical indicators is not funded; however, travel to present or learn about research on geochemistry that relates to some aspect of living or fossil foraminifera is fundable and should be explained in the abstract.

Retired members of the Cushman Foundation without other financial resources may apply for funds for research and travel dealing with any aspect of living or fossil foraminifera or other protists, such as diatoms, coccolithophorids, dinoflagellates, acritarchs, or radiolaria. Funds for research costs and travel for field work, museum study, or presentation at a professional meeting may be requested. This grant recognizes that retired workers often continue their research after leaving their institution of employment and no longer have funding resources. Retiree grant requests for travle are due by 15 February for spring and summer meetings and by 15 August for fall and winter meetings.

The Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research welcomes continuing and new members. With over 73 years of stewardship of foraminiferal studies and publications, our mission is to promote research on foraminifera and allied organisms. Memberships, private and corporate donations, and the work of Cushman Foundation volunteers are essential to raising the profile of foraminiferal studies and encouraging the next generation of foraminiferal researchers. Along with publication of the Journal of Foraminiferal Research, we support student and professional travel and research grants, our Special Publications series, and social and professional activities during national and international meetings. The many benefits of membership include:

• Supporting the advancement of the science of foraminifera, micropaleontology, and the history of life on Earth

• Learning about the most recent advances in foraminifera and micropaleontology and interacting and exchanging ideas with the worldwide micropaleontological community through our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter discussion portals

• Supporting accessibility, inclusion, diversity, and equity in exchanging scientific ideas, data, endeavors, and international collaborations related to foraminiferal studies and micropaleontology

• Publishing in and online access to two outstanding publications—Journal of Foraminiferal Research and Special Publications of the Cushman Foundation

• Participating in micropaleontological topical sessions and the Cushman exhibit booth for professional interactions and comradery at GSA meetings, the FORAMS international meeting, and other paleontological meetings

• Supporting the Foundation’s programs, awards, and grants that provide numerous opportunities, including those focused on students and early-career researchers as well as retirees

• Participating in educational outreach to K-12 children and to the general public.

Join or renew today by visiting our website at CushmanFoundation.org and clicking on the Membership tab.