IASE Award Program
NOMINATIONS ARE ACCEPTED YEAR AROUND
Deadline for consideration in any given year: March 15
The Idaho Academy of Science and Engineering seeks nominations for three prestigious annual awards:
DISTINGUISHED SCIENTIST/ENGINEER
An individual with outstanding achievements in science or engineering.
DISTINGUISHED COMMUNICATOR
An individual with outstanding achievements in communicating the meaning and values of science and/or engineering to students and/or the general public.
OUTSTANDING NEW INVESTIGATOR
An early-career individual who is within five years of degree receipt, and who has demonstrated great promise in science or engineering in or related to Idaho. The winner of this award may be invited to give a keynote address at the symposium.
REQUIREMENTS AND ELIGIBILITY
Nominees’ work should be conducted in or related to the state of Idaho. That means the person may live and work in Idaho or the work that he/she has done is of specific value or interest to Idahoans. Nominees need not be members of the Idaho Academy of Science and Engineering or even professional practitioners so long as their accomplishments are clearly STEM-related or in the realm of STEM education. Generally, nominees must be living at the time of the nomination . . . only in truly exceptional cases would the Academy consider giving an award posthumously. Other than these conditions, any individual who has contributed substantially to science/engineering or to science/engineering communication is eligible for one of these awards.
Submit nominations electronically as PDF email attachments to Awards.Coordinator@Idaho.Academy, with the email subject line: IASE Award Nomination.
NOMINATION PROCEDURES
Nominations must be word-processed and submitted electronically in Microsoft Word DOC or DOCX format. All should include the following information:
- Nominee’s name, address, phone number, and e-mail address.
- Nominee’s occupation, title, and institutional or company affiliation.
- A summary of the accomplishments for which the person is to be recognized (about 250 words).
- A brief biographical sketch of the nominee, including educational and professional career information.
- The nominator’s name, address, phone number, and e-mail address.
- At least one seconding letter in support of the nomination, more are
The core of the nomination is: A detailed description of what makes the nominee worthy of an award. Supporting information including photos may be included.
In no more than three or four typed pages, the nominee’s accomplishments should be described in broad terms, with a statement of why the work is considered outstanding. Just enough key details should be included to support the case being made. This supporting description will vary depending on the award and, to some extent, the nature of the nominee’s accomplishments.
Nominations for Distinguished Scientist/Engineer or Outstanding New Investigator should focus on the breakthrough qualities of the nominee’s accomplishments. Typically, this would include a discussion of pioneering discoveries, seminal investigations, major innovations, and so on . . . always with a brief statement of why these are considered to be landmark achievements. Evidence of leadership – numerous citations of the applicant’s publications, widespread follow-on work by others, service on technical committees and advisory groups, etc. – would do much to support the nominations. It is acceptable to include a full list of publications and patents in the nomination package, but a better approach would be to show only the most important papers and simply state the total number the nominee has to his or her credit.
Nominations for Distinguished Communicator could well cite innovation and inventiveness, but they are also likely to focus on effectiveness, impact, and influence. Outstanding achievers in education devise innovative classroom or field exercises and programs, create new and better ways to present scientific materials, find fresh ways to reach out to more students . . . they do whatever it takes to effectively convey the facts and concepts of science, and an appreciation for the scientific enterprise. Of course, providing “hard evidence” for the value of some of these accomplishments may be difficult. Sometimes the work may result in the publication of a manual, a conference paper, news articles, or even a textbook; but such opportunities are generally relatively limited. Supporting the nomination with additional “testimonials” may be the best way to show effectiveness and impact . . . but supporters should be urged to be as specific as possible.
Comparable factors would also apply to other communicators – article writers, TV or movie producers, radio commentators, and so on. They too will be judged on their effectiveness, impact, and influence. In these cases, the nomination might describe how a local series of “hit” science programs was picked up by the national media and broadcast all over the country. Perhaps a book with a science/technical theme by an Idaho author suddenly becomes a national bestseller. Maybe a lecturer from Idaho starts turning up on national public television, or becomes a “hot item” on the national lecture circuit. Such accomplishments could well qualify an individual for this award.
SELECTION PROCESS
Nominations will be reviewed by an ad hoc panel of at least three individuals, selected by the Academy President and Executive Director. If at all possible, the group will include individuals whose work areas correspond to those of the nominees.
The panel will review all nominations versus the criteria outlined above and make a formal recommendation to the Executive Committee. The final decision will be made by the Executive Committee. The President will then contact the person(s) selected to make sure of their availability to attend the Symposium or make arrangements to confer the award in absentia.
RETENTION AND RESUBMISSION
Completed nomination packages may be submitted at any time, although any submitted after March 15 will be held for consideration during the following year’s award cycle. Nominations will remain active for a period of two years; after that, the nomination package must be revised and re-submitted for further consideration. Additional supporting information may be submitted for addition to a nomination that is already one year old.