Award Nominations: Arnold B. Arons Award for Excellence in Teaching, Advising, and Mentoring

This Award was established by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to honor the memory of Dr. Arnold B. Arons, long serving Trustee and Honorary Trustee of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

The Arnold B. Arons Award will be conferred periodically every two to five years as circumstances warrant to a WHOI Scientific Staff or Senior Technical Staff member who has demonstrated any or all of the following qualities during his/her participation in the education programs of the Institution:

• Sustained excellence in teaching.
• Sustained excellence in advising and/or mentoring.
• Exceptional promise in teaching, advising, or mentoring during early career involvement in the Institution’s education programs.

The Award will consist of a plaque engraved with the recipient’s name and a cash award. The recipient’s name will be engraved along with the date of receipt of the Award on a large plaque to be displayed in an appropriate manner in the Institution.

All members of the WHOI Scientific Staff and Senior Technical Staff (Research Specialists, Information System Specialists, Senior Engineers, Senior Research Specialists, Senior Information Systems Specialists and Principal Engineers), with the exception of the members of the Award Committee, are eligible for the award.

Nominations may be submitted by any WHOI employee, MIT/WHOI Joint Program student, WHOI postdoctoral appointee, MIT/WHOI Joint Program or WHOI alumni/ae. The Award Committee requests that nominations consist of:

1. A one or two page letter that addresses how the nominee’s activities at WHOI have fulfilled one or more of the award’s criteria (see above).
2. A full C.V. of the nominee that includes education activities such as teaching, advising, mentoring, and committee memberships both at WHOI and elsewhere.
3. Three letters of support for the nomination of one to two pages each. At least two of these letters should be from present or former WHOI employees, students, JP alumni/ae, or postdoctoral appointees.

All of the above documents should be sent to the Arnold Arons Award Committee c/o James Yoder, Vice President for Academic Programs and Dean, MS #31. Nominations are due by April 16, 2010. Questions about the award and nomination procedure should be directed to James Yoder (jyoder@whoi.edu) or Associate Dean James Price (jprice@whoi.edu).

The Award Committee will deliberate during late April and early May and will forward its recommendation to Dr. Susan Avery, WHOI President and Director, for her approval. The award will be presented at the Academic Convocation and Commencement to be held June 5, 2010 at WHOI.

Award Nominations: Ruth and Paul Fye Awards for Best Graduate Student Papers

On the occasion of Paul M. Fye's retirement as Director of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and in special recognition of his and Ruth Fye's personal interest in the graduate program and students, the employees of the Institution established an endowed fund through personal contributions to support an award for the best graduate student paper. The process of selections has evolved to presenting the award every five or six years for the best paper by a graduate student in each of the five subdisciplines of the Joint Program, as well as an award for an interdisciplinary paper.

An eligible paper is one that has been published in press or submitted between February 1, 2005 and January 31, 2010, and is based on work performed while the author was a student in the WHOI or MIT/WHOI Joint Graduate Program. For example, if a recent graduate submits a paper for consideration, it cannot be based on work performed since graduating. Likewise, a paper based primarily on work performed prior to entering the program would not be eligible.

Papers for consideration should be submitted no later than April 16, 2010 to the appropriate J. Seward Johnson Chair/Education Coordinator. Nominations for best interdisciplinary should be sent to Dr. Jim Price (jprice@whoi.edu).

Each J. Seward Johnson Chair/Education Coordinator at WHOI will form a review committee of three persons that will determine the awardee in their subdiscipline. The winner of the Ruth and Paul Fye Award for Excellence in Oceanographic Research will be presented with a check for $500 and a recognition certificate. As part of the Academic Convocation and Commencement to be held on June 5, 2010 at WHOI, an award will be conferred in each of the five sub-disciplines of the Joint Program.