Department of Geosciences

Student Research and Community Service Grants

GUIDELINES

(last updated November 2008)

Programs:

The Department of Geosciences has three funds that provide four types of grants to support student research and community service:

• Pestrong Geoscience Research Grants are to support student research in any area of the Geosciences, including geology, meteorology, oceanography and earth science education. The Pestrong fund was created by the generous donations of Professor Ray Pestrong.

• Dawdy Hydrology Research Grants are to support student research in any aspect of the hydrologic sciences, including all the disciplines encompassed by the Hydrology Section of the American Geophysical Union. The Dawdy fund was created by the generous donations of Doris and David Dawdy.

• Community Service Grants are to support student involvement in community service activities, particularly where students are contributing their skills and expertise in earth science to help solve environmental and social justice problems. Community service grants are supported by both the Pestrong and Dawdy funds.

• Atmospheric Sciences Education and Research Grants (ASERG) are to support student education, research and community service in meteorology. ASERG grants are funded by the generous donations of several anonymous donors.

Eligibility:

Undergraduate students who are majoring or minoring in Geology, Meteorology, Oceanography or Earth Science, and graduate students working toward a MS in Geosciences are eligible to apply for an award. Preference will be given to students currently enrolled in individual research courses numbered 697, 698, 699, 897, 898, or 899. All applicants must have a Geosciences Department faculty research advisor or sponsor.

Award Amount:

Pestrong and Dawdy Grants:

Undergraduate students may apply for funds up to a maximum of $400;

Graduate students may request up to $800.

ASERG Grants:

Undergraduate and graduate students may apply for up to $500.

Depending on the number of applicants and quality of proposals in any given semester, it may not be possible to provide these maximum amounts to any single applicant.

Award Uses:

Students may use awards only to fund costs involved with completing their research or community service projects; awards may not be used to cover other academic costs.

Examples of appropriate uses for the awards include:

• purchasing field or laboratory supplies such as maps and aerial photographs, sample bags, chemicals or equipment;

• field work expenses including transportation, subsistence, permits and insurance;

• professional laboratory analyses;

• travel and registration costs associated with participation in conferences;

• printing expenses to reproduce written reports, or page charges for publishing papers in journals;

• specialized computer software, etc.

Equipment and software that cost more than $100 will be the property of San Francisco State University and must be left as permanent additions to the Department’s laboratories.

Examples of inappropriate uses include:

• reimbursement for personal equipment purchases, such as laptop computers

• salary, stipends or other personal income

• costs of commuting to campus

• tuition, university fees

Proposal Review Process:

1) Grant awards will be made once each semester.

2) To be considered, proposals must be submitted (in triplicate) to the Department office (TH 509) before the close of business on the last Friday of the:

- fifth week of the Fall semester or

- tenth week of the Spring semester.

3) The Faculty committee on Student Grants will inform applicants of the result of the review process by the end of the sixth week of the semester.

4) Proposals received after the deadline may be considered in the following semester; the committee will not consider “emergency” funding requests.

Student Travel to Conferences:

Because students who submit abstracts to conferences may not know whether their abstract has been accepted by the grant proposal deadline, the follow considerations apply:

• Travel-related grants are only available to students who are first-authors of conference presentations.

• Students should submit proposals for travel to conferences by the proposal deadline, even if it is not yet known whether they will be invited to present.

• Students may assume that some amount of funding will be available for conference participation, although students presenting results of work supported by other research grants will be expected to share costs with that grant.

Proposal Preparation:

Complete proposals consist of the following parts:

• proposal narrative (detailed instructions below)

• itemized budget

• application form (attached below)

• faculty sponsor endorsement letter

• copy of project report if applicant has previously received a Department grant

Incomplete proposals will not be considered

The proposal narrative should be no more than two pages (single-spaced) of text; one page of additional figures is optional. The itemized budget should be on a separate page and detail all proposed expenses.

Proposal narratives should briefly address the following questions:

• What is the research question or goal of the project?

• How do you intend to answer this question or achieve this goal?

• How far along are you in implementing this project?

• How would the requested funds help? (please be specific)

• What other sources of funding have helped to support your project?

• What other sources of funding are you currently pursuing?

• Would an amount less than the full budget request still be useful?

Disbursement of approved project expenses:

• For items that cost less than $50, student or faculty advisor may purchase the items and submit receipts to the department office staff for petty cash reimbursement.

• Items that cost more than $50 can either be purchased directly by students and subsequently reimbursed, or purchased through the department requisition process. Student grant recipients should allow sufficient time for department and university staff to process requisition and reimbursement requests.

• Reimbursements can be made only after expenses are incurred; receipts are strictly required.

• Grant recipients should consult with department office manager Miriam Knof prior to incurring travel expenses, to clarify the requirements and limitations on travel expenses.

• Any major changes to planned project expenditures after grants have been awarded must be pre-approved in writing by the chair of the student awards committee or chair of the Department.

Project reports:

At the conclusion of the project, the student grant recipients are required to submit a brief summary report describing the outcome of the activities directly supported by the Department grant. If student grant recipients request additional funding they must first submit a progress report describing the outcome so far of the work supported by the previous grant.

APPLICATION FORM

Geosciences Student Project Awards

Name: _____________________________________ Date: ____________________

Student number: _________________________________________________________

Address: _______________________________________________________________

Phone: ____________________ E-mail: ____________________________________

Status (Grad/Undergrad)________Major________ Expected graduation date:_________

Course (e.g., Geol or Metr 697, 699, 698, 898): _________________________________

Project title: _____________________________________________________________

Faculty advisor: __________________________________________________________

Budget request (total dollar amount): _________________________________________

Grant type (check one):

Pestrong Geosciences __________ Dawdy Hydrology_________ ASERG ___________

Is this a Community Service project? (yes / no)

Have you received a previous Department grant? (yes / no)

If yes: Amount________ Date approved__________ Date report submitted__________

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FACULTY ACTION

Review Committee: _______________________________________________________

Award approved: __________________ Award not approved: ___________________

Budget amount approved: ____________ Date of approval / denial: ________________

If not approved, reason for denial: ___________________________________________