Fellowship

Gordon Baird is an extraordinary field geologist/paleontologist, and an expert on taphonomy, paleobiology, and Paleozoic stratigraphy in eastern Laurentia. An outstanding educator, Gordon's remarkable field trips have mentored generations on the importance and excitement of field geology. Gordon established himself as an expert on taphonomy, paleoecology of the Mazon Creek Lagerstätte. His research established the pathways responsible for preservation and thus facilitated the development of general conceptual frameworks for Lagerstätten and taphofacies—the use of fossil preservation in reconstructing paleoenvironments. Gordon is one of the best field stratigraphers in the world and has long served as a titular member of the IUGS International Subcommission on Devonian Stratigraphy. His encyclopedic knowledge of Paleozoic strata and fossils has facilitated high-resolution sequence stratigraphy and basin analysis and contributed to a better understanding of evolutionary paleoecology and the causes and effects of biocrises. Gordon’s brilliant insights into stratigraphy, paleoecology, and Earth system history continue to inspire researchers and students, alike. —Carlton E. Brett

Paul Baldauf: Over the past 37 years, since joining GSA as a student, Paul has significantly influenced the Earth science community. He served in the Geoscience Education Division's four-year leadership cycle, including as chair and past chair (2011-2012). He also served on the Annual Program Committee and its Technical Program Committee (2014-2017), chairing the latter during the 2016 GSA Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado. Three of his students have propelled their success with the On To the Future program. He has taught field methods at Lehigh University, University at Buffalo, and South Dakota School. In summary, Dr. Baldauf has continuously sought the best practices to employ in classroom, field, and online settings, to engage students with the world and prepare them to be scientifically curious, technically proficient, and professionally competent. He has made significant contributions to GSA through division leadership, programming, and participation. —Patrick Burkhart

Bill Burns has more than 100 publications and has made major contributions to landslide science. He created the most complete landslide inventory ever compiled for the State of Oregon (SLIDO). This freely-available dataset is incredibly valuable to researchers around the globe, and local planning agencies throughout the State of Oregon. Bill has an exemplary record of service to GSA and has been an energetic leader in GSA activities for his more than 25-year career. He was active member of the Environmental and Engineering Geology Division (EEGD) Board from 2011 to 2016, serving in each of the four management positions (Secretary/Treasurer, Second Vice Chair, Vice Chair, and Chair). Bill’s service continued as he co-founded and co-chaired the Division’s only current committee, the Landslide Committee. In addition, he has led GSA field trips, was a co-author of 5 GSA publications, and has been an active convener and presenter at GSA for years. —Francis K. Rengers

Mark W. Carter: Mark is a well-recognized authority on the geology of the Southern Appalachians, from the Blue Ridge to the Fall Zone. His expertise stems from his vast field experience working for the North Carolina and Virginia state geological surveys, and his current employment as a Research Geologist at the U.S. Geological Survey. Mark has served as first author on fifteen 7.5-minute quadrangle maps and co-authored at least six others, covering parts of Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Mark is currently mapping federal lands in the Piedmont of Georgia. His field studies have led to major contributions in regional tectonics, landscape evolution, and earthquake hazards. Mark is also an exemplary contributor to GSA meetings. He has served as Chair or Co-chair of technical sessions and symposia, co-led many GSA field trips, served as Co-chair for field trips and technical programs, and provided technical review for at least fourteen field trip guidebooks. —David Spears

Elena Centeno-García is a pioneering female Mexican geologist. She is expert in all aspects of the geologic evolution of Mexico, including tectonostratigraphic terrane analysis, sedimentology, paleontology, U-Pb zircon geochronology, and petroleum and economic geology. She has broken ground by serving as a female leader in UNAM and Mexican professional societies, including two terms as the first female Director of the Institute of Geology at UNAM, and the first female president of the Mexican Geological Society. Dra. Centeno-García is also the first geologist to become a UNAM Regent (2022-present). Her extensive professional activities and outreach include service to GSA, the IUGS, the Mexican National Paleontological Council, and the Advisory Council for Energy Transition, as well frequent public lectures, public television and radio programs, and press articles. Dra. Centeno-García has a strong commitment with education, teaching over 70 courses and supervising graduate student research on a very broad range of topics. —Cathy Busby

Jay Chapman is an exceptional young scientist whose achievements are extraordinary for someone at this stage in his career. He is on the way to being a super scientist with potential to be the next Bill Dickinson or Warren Hamilton of tectonic studies. He is an extraordinary writer with more published papers from his graduate student days than most people going up for tenure and his productivity has only increased since becoming a professor. Several of his papers are already becoming widely cited classics. Beyond research he has also shown important outreach efforts with YouTube videos and work with underrepresented groups. An extraordinary individual deserving of fellowship. —Terry L. Pavlis

David Chew (Trinity College Dublin): Professor Chew is recognized for major contributions in geochronology and the development and application of Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). This work has been grounded with outstanding field work across multiple continents, and has led to significant advances in our understanding of tectonics and sediment provenance. Crucially, he has shared this knowledge through exceptional mentorship, research output, collegiality and service. —Gerald R. Dickens

José Constantine is an innovative and influential geoscientist, who conducts high-quality and societally valuable research that has advanced our understanding of river system evolution. He has also embraced environmental justice projects, with focus on disadvantaged communities. His research program at Williams has provided opportunities and training for many undergrads and a stepping stone for students from underrepresented backgrounds. He is an innovative and productive research scientist, a caring and effective mentor of geoscience students, and a pro-active ambassador for geoscience in service of the public good. —Rónadh Cox

Matthew M. Crawford: Dr. Crawford’s exceptional work in science communication, outreach, and citizen science programs has significantly advanced the public's understanding of geosciences while addressing critical societal challenges. He has hosted the Big Blue Rock Pod, a podcast with 38 episodes to date, which has effectively conveyed geoscience topics such as landslide hazards, radon awareness, and the geology of Kentucky’s landscapes to a wide audience. He has briefed the Congressional Hazards Caucus on “Addressing Landslides in Kentucky: A State Perspective”, he has given frequent interviews with media outlets and presented at unnumerable community events, and he developed the regional landslide hazard mitigation plans for FEMA. Furthermore, Dr. Crawford’s engagement of the public in citizen science initiatives has created a model for participatory geoscience that exemplifies the spirit of public engagement. Their collaborative work using citizen-generated data for validating satellite soil moisture and precipitation products has advanced landslide susceptibility modeling in the Appalachian region. —Paul M. Santi

Brian Currie (Miami University): Brain Currie has advanced our understanding of the structural and tectonic factors controlling sedimentary basin development, the tectonic evolution of mountain belts, and past changes in the Earth’s environments and climate by combining sedimentary geology, structural geology, and stable-isotope geochemistry. His research has spanned four continents and covered a wide range of topics including the paleoenvironments and paleoclimates associated with early dinosaur evolution in Argentina and early hominid evolution in east Africa, Mesozoic depositional environments and the lithological and stratigraphic controls on hydrocarbon accumulations in the Rocky Mountains, the tectonic evolution of the Sevier thrust belt and foreland basin in the western United States, the Cenozoic uplift history of the Tibetan Plateau, and Neogene paleoclimate in the Atacama Desert of Chile. Brian is also recognized for his sustained record of training and mentoring geoscientists with the teaching of field camp for the last three decades. —Jason Rech

Michael Fenster taught at an undergraduate college, Randolph Macon, and amassed an outstanding research and teaching career. His research focuses on determining how long-term drivers of change (climate, sea-level rise) and short-term disturbances (storms) interact to alter the morphology, sedimentology, and ecology of barrier islands, tidal inlets, and estuaries. Mike’s work completely changed the long-held paradigm that estuaries are sediment sinks, rather through field studies demonstrated they export sand during major flood events. Likewise, he showed that high impact storms are not the primary factor controlling shoreline trends, rather periods of elevated storm activity dictate moderate-term rates of shoreline change. Mike is an extraordinary teacher and mentor and was bestowed the Stephen H. Watts Professor of Science Endowed Chair for research and exceptional teaching. Finally, Michael has given exemplary service to GSA as a keynote speaker, field trip leader, Regional and National Special Sessions convener, and publishing extensively in GSA Journals. —Duncan FitzGerald

Gary Gianniny is a respected research scientist with a history of service to our society and a long record of excellence in education, As a professor at Fort Lewis College in Durango Colorado he has a strong record of research in the Paleozoic of the Ancestral Rocky Mountains. He has had great impact through his mentoring undergraduates, with more than 86 student co-authors on abstracts, mostly from GSA meetings. He has served as Chair of the Sedimentary Geology Division. He also served as the chair of the Fort Lewis Geology Program recruiting and retaining a diverse student body. —Richard Langford

Stacia Gordon has made important contributions to our understanding of lithospheric evolution through her innovative application of high-precision geochronology, metamorphic petrology, field observations, and structural analysis to fundamental tectonic problems such as the role of partial melting and fluids in the rheology of orogens. Her research and that of her expertly mentored students has illuminated the mechanisms and timescales of mid- to deep crustal processes in magmatic arcs and collisional orogens, including the North Cascades, Bhutan, Papua New Guinea, and Norway. Gordon's service to the geological community is exceptional. She has served as the General Chair of two Cordilleran Section meetings, co-convened a Penrose Conference, edited a GSA book, and is serving as an associate editor of GSA Bulletin. She is an effective communicator within and beyond the geoscience, including increasing public awareness of geology by participating in a popular YouTube videos geared towards the public. —Robert Miller

Brian Jicha (University of Wisconsin-Madison): Brian Jicha is recognized as an international leader in geochronology of a wide variety of Earth's processes including arc volcanism, landscape evolution, and hotspot migration. He has provided access to geochronologic data to hundreds of scientists and students from around the globe for more than two decades, and has devoted countless hours to several GSA-sponsored programs as a reviewer. —Michael O. Garcia

David John: In a long and distinguished career with the USGS, David John made fundamental contributions to economic geology and our understanding of the Cenozoic tectonic and magmatic development of the western US Cordillera. His best-known work—on epithermal gold deposits in the Great Basin, and the recognition that they can be associated with continental tholeiitic basalts—transformed our understanding of the genesis and distribution of these important sources of precious metals. He also contributed substantially to our understanding of the origin, evolution, and co-product character of porphyry copper-molybdenum systems. A peerless old school field geologist, Dave spent much of his career in the desert turning careful observations and interpretations into geologic maps, publishing over 30 maps of everything from 2 degree sheets to 24K quadrangle maps. He backed up his mapping with careful petrography, geochemistry, and geochronology, much of it published in GSA journals. —Joseph P. Colgan

Patricia Kambesis: Citation coming soon

Melissa Lamb: Citation coming soon

Isaac J. Larsen is a stellar interdisciplinary geoscientist, applying insight and skills in geochemistry, remote sensing, geochronology, and numerical modeling to address fundamental field-scale geologic questions of landscape evolution and soil erosion. He is also a leader in the scientific community, contributing to education, scientific meeting organization, fieldtrips, outreach, and inclusion so to facilitate scientific engagement and understanding across the wide spectrum of students, educators, scientists, and communities served by GSA. —Jim O'Connor

Amy Leventer is a pioneer in Antarctic marine geology. Her seminal work on solar cycles recorded in Holocene sediments of the Palmer Deep, offshore the Antarctic Peninsula, spurred a new era of multi-proxy approaches to constructing paleoclimate records from Antarctic margin sediments. Amy is an internationally recognized expert in diatoms in the Southern Ocean, diatom distribution and ecology in the water column, processes affecting the fate and transport of diatoms to the ocean floor, and their preservation in the sediment column. Her leadership led to her appointment to the Antarctic Research Vessel Science advisory committee of the NSF Office of Polar Programs, where she dedicated significant time to planning for the next generation of polar marine scientists. For more than thirty-five years, Dr. Leventer has been a driving force behind the Polar Marine Diatom Workshop, a hands-on and microscope-based workshop that brings together experienced diatomists and students. —Julia S. Wellner

Arthur Merschat: Citation coming soon

Jason Polk is a karst hydrogeologist and environmental geoscientist with an impressive fundamental and applied research portfolio. He helped found, lead, and grow the GSA Karst Division, and is advancing the field and supporting the next generation of karst scientists through tireless service, mentorship, and institutional leadership. His many projects include working with diverse stakeholders across sectors to improve groundwater contamination hazard response, flood prediction and monitoring, sinkhole risk and evaluation, and karst and climate vulnerability assessments, which span local to international. In addition to his service to GSA, Dr. Polk founded the Center for Human and GeoEnvironmental Studies at Western Kentucky University (WKU), has served as WKU Geoscience MS Graduate Program Coordinator since 2017, and has an strong track record of mentoring graduate and undergraduate students, including advising more than 30 master's thesis students in the WKU Geoscience and Geography and Geology programs. —Dan Jones

Tony Rodriguez is nominated as a Fellow of the GSA for sustained and creative research in coastal and nearshore sedimentology and stratigraphy that elucidates the dynamics of carbon cycling in salt marshes, the response of oyster reefs to sea level rise, and the influence of land use on sediment delivery to coastlines. —Eric Kirby

Raymond Rogers has significantly advanced the fields of taphonomy and sedimentary geology over his 30+ year career. His pioneering research on fossil bonebeds and early dinosaurs has reshaped our understanding of vertebrate paleontology. An exceptional mentor, Dr. Rogers has guided nearly 50 students through honors theses—75% have pursued graduate studies, 50% earned PhDs, and 25% now hold faculty positions. He frequently publishes with student co-authors, exemplifying a deep commitment to training future geoscientists. His influential 2007 book on bonebeds and work on parasitism and bone borings highlight his passion for uncovering the complex processes of fossilization. The election of Dr. Rogers to GSA Fellowship recognizes his sustained scientific excellence and profound impact on geoscience education. —Alan Chapman

Zach Sharp has developed innovative methods in stable isotope analyses of geological and biological material on Earth and in our Solar System. His insights into geochemical processes span deep Earth processes to paleontology to animal physiology to the hydrologic cycle and to the very origins of our planetary system. His work bridges the fields of the geological and biological sciences. He is deeply involved in training the next generation of scientists. —Thure Edward Cerling

Noah Snyder: Citation coming soon

Paul Spry is recognized for research and pedagogical contributions to economic geology, geochemistry, and metamorphic petrology. His multidisciplinary integrated field and laboratory research has enhanced our understanding of the genesis of sediment- and volcanic-hosted ore deposits, metamorphism of sulfide deposits and the chemical/mineralogical consequences thereof, the geology and genesis of Au-Te deposits, and geochronology and utilization of unconventional isotope systems to understand ore-forming processes. His work has also been important for those exploring for mineral resources and for ensuring a secure and stable supply of metals, including critical minerals, for society. —Steve Piercey

Amy Weislogel: Citation coming soon

Mike Wizevich has an exceptional record of service to GSA in helping to organize three GSA northeast section meetings, as well as other committee work. His research has centered around multiple areas that illustrate his range of field experiences: the central Appalachians, Antarctica, New Zealand, Switzerland, and southern Utah. He has made significant contributions toward the understanding of various sedimentological phenomena such as seismites, sedimentary volcanoes, and microbial mats; and has also contributed to delineating the origin of Triassic rocks in southwestern Switzerland. Importantly, his mentoring of undergraduate students has led to most going on to a Master's and six have completed their PhDs. —Mark