Iowa State University

Zaffarano Prize Guidelines

The Zaffarano Prize for Graduate Student Research

2007 Award Deadlines: Nominations due by March 1, 2008; Send nominations to Felicity Douglas , Graduate College , 1137 Pearson Hall.

Winner notified by mid-April.

Award presented at the Sigma Xi banquet on the 4th Thursday in April, 2008.

Contact person: Felicity Douglas 294-1958 or fdouglas@iastate.edu

Purpose: to recognize superior performance in publishable research by an ISU graduate Student. A check for $1,500 and a plaque will be presented to the winner at the Sigma Xi banquet in April. For the purpose of this award, publishable research is defined as work written and accepted for publication in a national or international refereed journal. Both the quality and the number of publications produced during the student’s time at ISU will be considered. The awardee must either be currently enrolled at ISU for spring 2008 semester, or have graduated in the 2 preceding semesters (summer or fall 2007). In all cases he or she must be available to receive the award in person.

Procedure: Major professors and faculty make nominations to the Dean of the Graduate College by March 1, submitting them to Felicity Douglas, Graduate College, 1137 Pearson Hall. Each should include a professional resume with copies or reprints of all publications authored by the student while enrolled at ISU. When the student is not the senior author, a note of explanation by the major professor or coauthor describing the student contributions to the published work is needed. The nomination should also include a letter from the student’s major professor and an endorsement from either the departmental chair or the director of graduate education (DOGE).

Because Sigma Xi is interested in the nominees for the Zaffarano Prize, they have asked that each nomination for this prize include a statement indicating whether the student is a current member of Sigma Xi or if he/she is being nominated for membership. However, membership in Sigma Xi is not required of candidates for the Zaffarano Prize.

A committee appointed by the Graduate Dean and consisting of faculty and members of the Graduate and Professional Student Senate select from among the nominees the student whose production of publishable research while at ISU is most worthy of this prize. In some years there are also “Honorable Mentions.” The winner(s) will be notified by mid-April, and the publications of non-winners returned to them.

Philosophy: Dr Daniel Zaffarano, Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate College at Iowa State University from 1971-1988, established this award. He believed accomplishments in research contribute to our knowledge capital when they are made widely available to other workers, usually through publication, for review and use. Until results are disseminated, a research project is not completed. Part of graduate education is practice in explaining research results, orally or in writing. With the encouragement of their advisors, many students prepare and submit for publication significant achievements in their research even before a thesis or dissertation is completed. Students who gain this experience will have a competitive advantage when they seek further education or employment, and the purpose of this prize is to honor and reward those who excel for their effort and achievement.

A list of previous winners is available here.

If you have questions, please contact Felicity Douglas at 294-1958 or fdouglas@iastate.edu.

The Fountain of the Four Seasons, one of many pieces on campus created by Christian Petersen, has graced the front of the Memorial Union since 1941.