2004-2005 Outstanding Student Awards
These outstanding students were selected by the geology department faculty of their respective universities. The students were presented a check and a commemorative plaque at the April General Dinner Meeting.
Carol Groze, Lamar University
Carol Lewis Groze is currently a junior geology major at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. She was born and raised on a farm in northern, Illinois and graduated from JD Darnall High School in Genesseo, Illinois in the year of 1975. She returned to college, after raising two children to complete her college career. Her desire for outdoor activities ans science has always been of interest to her, resulting in choosing the field of geology.
During her time at Lamar university, she has been on the President’s List twice and is a member of the Lamar University Geological Society, currently holding the position of Secretary. After receiving she Bachelor of Science degree, she intends to pursue a graduate degree. Her interest are hunting, fishing, camping and hiking.
Alex Simms, Rice University
It is a pleasure to write this letter on behalf of Mr. Alex Simms, who is our department’s nominee for the 2005 HGS outstanding student award. I have been fortunate to have some very good PhD students in my career. Alex stands out among all my students as the most academically qualified and creative. He came to Rice with a 4.0 undergraduate grade point average, so we had high expectations of him from the start. We were even more impressed with Alex after we came to know him and had the opportunity to observe him conducting science. He has an exceptionally inquisitive and creative mind. He is also extremely competent in the more quantitative aspects of science, a rarity in young sedimentologists these days. Since coming to Rice he has taken very demanding courses in geology, geophysics and engineering and continued to maintain a perfect grade point average. He currently holds an NSF fellowship, which is quite an honor.
Alex has now reached that stage in his career when he is moving away from course work and undertaking full-time research. Being exceptionally bright and creative, it is no surprise that he has taken on more than one research project and is managing to balance these efforts extremely well. His original research project was a coastal geology project, specifically a study of the origin of the Corpus Christi Bay/Barrier complex. The objective of this research is to understand the response of linked barrier-bay systems to past climate and sea level change.. I am confident that his work will serve as a basis for predicting coastal response to future changes in the rate of sea-level rise and climate change. Thus, this research has considerable societal relevance.
Alex has already submitted three papers to peer reviewed journals, one on the origin of Corpus Bay, one on incised valleys, and another on the origin of Mustang Island. He is currently in Australia, working with Kurt Lambeck on a geohydroidal-isostatic model for the Gulf of Mexico.
Alex is a truly outstanding student. He has a bright future ahead and is a well deserving of this award.
Sincerely,
John B. Anderson
Maurice Ewing Professor of Oceanography
Lynn Holik, Sam Houston State University
Lynn is a senior at Sam Houston State University and will graduate in May with degrees in both geology and geography. In addition to being a full-time student, she is also a wife and mother of twin boys and works as an employee of the Harris County district Attorney’s Office. While attending SHSU, Lynn has been very active within the department of Geology and Geography. She has served as secretary of the Sam Houston Association of Geology Students (2001-2002) and as president of the Gamma Chapter of Gamma Theta Upsilon (2003-2005). In addition to her club activities, Lynn is a student teaching assistant for physical and historical labs and is currently working on two research projects. Her primary research is a sedimentary research project, under the direction of Dr. Chris Baldwin. A secondary project involves using the SEM to look for micro-organisms in the Jurassic Entrada and Navajo sandstones for Dr. Dennis Netoff. Lynn has received a number of honors and awards while attending SHSU, including the HGS Outstanding Student Award, the HGS Undergraduate Scholarship Award, the Cannon Geological Scholarship, and the John H. Bounds Geography Scholarship. Lynn plans to join the work force following graduation. She hopes that her experiences in the work force will be as rewarding and memorable as the years she has spent at SHSU.
Marcy Stonecipher, Stephen F. AustinCurrently a senior at Stephen F. Austin State University, Marcy plans to graduate with a major in Geology in May and pursue graduate studies in the fall semester. She is very active in all three departmental organizations, Geology Student Association, student chapter of American Association of Petroleum Geologists, and Sigma Gamma Epsilon.. Marcy currently serves as President of the Geology Student Association and as Secretary of SGE. She has been on the Dean’s List for six semesters and was a Houston Geological Society Scholarship recipient during Fall 2004. Marcy’s hobbies include playing the guitar, camping, and hiking.
Shannon Renee Bourque, Texas A&MRenee is a senior majoring in geology at Texas A&M University. She spent the summer of 2004 working in Utah at the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, and volunteering with the College of Eastern Utah’s Prehistoric Museum. Renee has worked on two research projects with Dr. Philip Rabinowitz: one involving the use of GPR to locate and record dinosaur tracks in Colorado, and the second researching and cataloguing all DSDP and ODP sites containing the KT boundary. In March, she will present posters on each of the projects at the Texas Academy of Science. Renee has served as an officer in the Geology and Geophysics Society since 2003, currently