Posted: January 31, 2021

We are now accepting applications for the for the 2021 Apes Valentes Graduate Student Award for research and other projects in pollinator biology and health!

The Penn State Center for Pollinator Research is seeking graduate student applicants for the Apes Valentes Graduate Student Award to support student-led projects in pollinator biology and health. Research, extension, education and/or outreach projects related to all aspects of pollinator biology and health are encouraged. Students from non-biology backgrounds that would like to develop artistic or other scholarly works related to pollinators to be disseminated to the public are also encouraged to apply. The successful candidates will receive an award of up to $5000 to be applied to project costs. Projects are expected to be conducted between May and August 2021.

Interested students should submit their applications to Kasey Packer (kjp5188@psu.edu) by April 1, 2021. Applicants will be notified of the decision of the selection committee by April 16, 2021. Applications should include a brief 2-page description of the proposed project, a one-page letter of support from their faculty mentor, and a budget.

Project descriptions for research proposals should include sections on background, significance, objectives, experimental (or project) design, expected outcomes, cited literature if relevant, and the student's specific role in the project. Please also include a "broader impacts" section, which will explain how society will benefit from this project. For research proposals, this section should describe at least one outreach activity that the student will participate in during the summer or fall. For non-research proposals, it should explain a vision for how the work will be shared with the public. 

It is recommended that the student work closely with their mentor to develop the project, but the project should represent a student-generated effort. Thus, the student must be involved in all aspects of the proposal writing, project development, implementation, and data interpretation.

Recipients of this award will be asked to submit a brief report on the project outcomes in December 2021.

For more information please contact Heather Hines ().