Hydrology Section: Now Accepting Honor Nominations
Update*
*Originally drafted by Past-President Jeff McDonnell (1/18/2018), revised and updated by Section President Scott Tyler for the 2020 nomination cycle.
Dear Hydrology Section,
To encourage a deep and diverse awards nomination pool, the Hydrology Section as adopted a 2-Step nomination procedure. Originally launched in 2018, the Section leadership has responded to suggestions from the community to modify slightly the procedure and this information document summarizes the process for 2020, including relevant dates.
These guidelines pertain only to the Hydrology section awards: Walter Langbein Lecture, Paul A. Witherspoon Lecture, Hydrologic Sciences Early Career Award, and the Hydrological Sciences Award. Union awards, medals and prizes and Union Fellows honors are overseen by the Union, not the Hydrology Section, and do not follow the procedures described below.
The objective of the 2-Step process is to increase the number of excellent nominations for deserving and diverse candidates across our hydrology community. Our expectation is that a streamlined nomination process will generate more nominations. As always, anyone can submit a nomination. We hope that you will consider someone you think is deserving. We encourage our technical committees to identify at least 1 person for each award, and that past awardees and Fellows will consider taking the time to nominate an outstanding junior or senior colleague.
How to submit a nomination?
Making a nomination is a two-part process:
First Round Requirements: Due March 1, 2021
- Nomination letter, no more than two pages in length, stressing the nominee’s qualifications to meet the selection criteria and qualifications as stated in the award description. The nomination letter must also list at least 3 potential writers of letters of support.
- The nominee’s CV, no more than 2 pages in length, and containing the following information as a minimum: CVs must list all the following candidate information: name, mailing and email address, history of employment, degrees, research experience, honors, memberships, service to the community through committee work, advisory boards, etc.
- “A Selected Bibliography, no more than 2 pages in length, may be included in the first round nomination package, but is not required for first round consideration. The Selected Bibliography should briefly state the total number and types of publications; specify the number published in AGU publications. For example: “Jane Doe is the author of 92 publications, 86 in peer-reviewed scientific journals, 14 of which have been published in AGU journals and books. The following selected list best supports Jane’s nomination for AGU Fellow.”
- First round nomination materials are to be emailed directly to AGU by midnight, February 15, 2010. (acovington@agu.org)
Second Round Requirements: Due April 15, 2021.
Second round notification to all nominators will occur on or around March 1, 2021. Full nomination packages due to AGU by April 15, 2021. It is anticipated that nomination packages will be submitted via the AGU Open Waters platform and uploading information will be provided directly to the nominators.
For the second round nominations, the following are required:
- The nomination letter, no more than 2 pages in length, should stress the nominee’s qualifications to meet the selection criteria and qualifications.
- The nominee’s CV will be no more than 2 pages in length and contain the following information as a minimum: CVs must list all the following candidate information: name, mailing and email address, history of employment, degrees, research experience, honors, memberships, service to the community through committee work, advisory boards, etc.
- A Selected Bibliography, no more than 2 pages in length, must be included. The Selected Bibliography should briefly state the total number and types of publications; specify the number published in AGU publications. For example: “Jane Doe is the author of 92 publications, 86 in peer-reviewed scientific journals, 14 of which have been published in AGU journals and books. The following selected list best supports Jane’s nomination for AGU Fellow.”
- Up to three letters of support, each no more than 2 pages in length.
Who can submit a nomination for these awards?
Anyone can be a nominator. While this has always been the case, there continues to be some confusion in this regard. All are encouraged to nominate a deserving candidate. I emphasize that this is regardless of rank, age, country of origin or any other possible factor.
A compelling nomination will be necessary to make it to the next round. Below are snippets of very useful material from AGU on how to craft a compelling nomination letter:
- Read the criteria for each honor and award carefully. Is your nominee right for the award? Intent, criteria and required nomination components for all AGU honors can be found on the Hydrology Section website. You can also ask the committee chair or any committee member regarding the award you are thinking of nominating someone for, to get further information.
- Assure that your letter addresses why the candidate is deserving of the award. While all nomination letters should explicitly address the selection criteria and explain the importance of the science/accomplishments relevant to the award and assure the nomination materials are tailored to the award, it is also important to demonstrate what or how has this person accomplished that has changed how we view the hydrologic world. Did they make key discoveries and why are they important to how we in hydrology and the broader scientific world view these discoveries? Other items that can include relating to the specific criteria of the award include: service, unique impact/AGU service; teaching/mentoring or outreach.
- Provide a complete overview of your nominee and emphasize the unique elements of his/her accomplishments that make your nomination stand out from others.
- Focus on the science/service/education achievements (depending on goal of the award), the impact, novelty, creativity, depth and breadth of the nominee’s research rather than quantitative metrics (number of publications, h-factor, etc.) and biographical facts (education, employment history, awards) that are listed in the nominee’s CV.
- Mention other accolades. Distinguish and highlight the role of the nominee (is the nominee a motivator/leader/implementer?).
- Mention relationships to co-workers (students, postdoc, mentor, etc.). If the nominee has a large research group, highlight the intellectual contributions made by the individual to the work. Also, mention the success of coworkers the nominee has influenced (students, postdocs, and adjunct faculty).
- For senior awards, focus on transformational science documented by specific publications and how they might have changed the course of research in the field. Link to specific papers in a bibliography or on the CV and discuss why they are important. Always support with evidence for each criterion.
- Emphasize service to AGU and the science community and contribution to education. These can be important tie breakers.
- Check the list of previous winners and identify what they have in common with your nominee.
- Submit a concise, well-written 2-page letter. Follow the nomination requirements and include in addition to the 2-page letter the nominee’s CV (2 pages), a 2 page Bibliography (optional for Round #1) and names of the 3 letter writers. Avoid the phrase “I know of no one else more deserving of this award.”
- If at first you don’t succeed…. resubmit! Solicit feedback from the selection committee or the Section leadership after the process is complete. As long as your nominee meets the criteria of the award, review and update the submission for the following cycle and resubmit.
Other Details
Immediately after March 1, AGU will send the respective award chairs an exported report of all nominations that have been submitted along with the individual nomination packages. This will be done through a secured drop file. Once the award chairs have informed AGU of the nomination packages they wish to move forward, AGU will allow the respective nominators access to update the submission and submit supporting letters by April 15, after which the award committee will have full access and can proceed with deliberation and selection.
We look forward to your nominations and do not hesitate to contact the Section Leadership with any questions or thoughts!
Scott W. Tyler, Hydrology Section President, AGU