Recognition for Excellence
Geography students are successful competitors for a variety of prestigious national scholarships, academic programs, and professional organization awards. Geography student scholars have been recognized by agencies such as the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Association of American Geographers, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Department of Defense. Kansas State University geography students have also earned a total of 18 GTU Buzzard Scholarships, the most of any university in the United States.
Chronology of Major Student Awards and Honors
| 2013 | Melissa Belz | First Place, PhD Student Paper Competition, Asia Specialty Group, Association of American Geographers |
| Melissa Belz | First Place, PhD Student Paper Competition, Landscape Specialty Group, Association of American Geographers | |
| Lynn Brien | Francis E. "Gene" Lortz Memorial Scholarship, Central Region of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) | |
| Bart Grudzinski | Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, National Science Foundation | |
| Heidi Mehl | Travel Award, Water Resources Specialty Group, Association of American Geographers | |
| 2012 | Ryan Bergstrom | K-State Doctoral Nominee, Midwest Association of Graduate Schools Excellence in Teaching Award |
| Katie Costigan | Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, National Science Foundation | |
| Christopher Morris | Fellow, Evidence-based Inquiry into the Distant, Remote or Past (EIDRoP), NSF GK-12 Program, Kansas State University | |
| Christopher Morris | Third Place, Student Poster Competition, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| 2011 | Melissa Belz | Evelyn Pruitt National Fellowship for Dissertation Research, Society of Women Geographers |
| Ryan Bergstrom | Summer Graduate Student Research Grant, Charles Redd Center for Western Studies | |
| Katie Costigan | AAG Geomorphology Specialty Group Reds Wolman Student Research Award | |
| Katie Costigan | YSI, Inc. Scholarship and Equipment Loan | |
| Heidi Mehl | Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellowship, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | |
| Tyra Olstad | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Carter Wang | First Place, Student Poster Competition, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| 2010 | Rhett Mohler | Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, National Science Foundation (NSF) |
| James Wells | Grant, Charles Redd Center for Western Studies at Brigham Young University | |
| 2009 | Ryan Bergstrom | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference |
| Ben Meade | First Place Master's Paper, Geomorphology Specialty Group, Association of American Geographers | |
| Nicole Wayant | Abraham Anson Memorial Scholarship, American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing | |
| Nicole Wayant | Anderson Outstanding Senior Award in Academics, Kansas State University Alumni Association | |
| Nicole Wayant | Distinguished Undergraduate Student in Research Award, Office of the Provost, Kansas State University | |
| Nicole Wayant | Science and Mathematics Research for Transformation Scholarship, U.S. Department of Defense | |
| 2008 | Ryan Bergstrom | First Place Doctoral Paper, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers |
| Erik Bowles | First Place Poster (Tie), Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Julie Commerford | First Place Master's Paper (Tie), Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| David Koch | Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, National Science Foundation (NSF) | |
| Tyra Olstad | Second Place Doctoral Paper, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Sumanth Reddy | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship | |
| Linnea Sando | First Place Master's Paper (Tie), Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Nicole Wayant | Second Place Undergraduate Paper, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Iris Wilson | Morris K. Udall Scholarship | |
| 2007 | Scott Deaner | William L. Stamey Outstanding Teaching Award, College of Arts & Sciences, Kansas State University |
| Nicholas Graf and Jeffrey Neel | Best Poster, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Brandon Haddock | First Place Doctoral Paper, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| Darci Paull | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference | |
| Gina Thornburg | Travel Grant, Rural Geography Specialty Group, Association of American Geographers | |
| Darci Paull | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference | |
| 2006 | Matthew Gerike | Distinguished Master's Thesis Award, Kansas State University |
| 2005 | Mary Dobbs | Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, National Science Foundation (NSF) |
| Darci Paull | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference | |
| Mitchel Stimers | First Place, Student Poster Competition, Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division of the Association of American Geographers | |
| 2004 | Debarchana Ghosh | First Place, Student Poster Competition, Applied Geography Conference |
| Paul Mannion | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship | |
| 2003 | Bradley Hammerschmidt | U.S. Department of Homeland Security Undergraduate Fellowship |
| Bradley Hammerschmidt | Francis E. "Gene" Lortz Memorial Scholarship, Central Region of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) | |
| 2000 | Katrina Frank | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship |
| 1999 | Holly Barcus | First Place, Student Poster Competition, Applied Geography Conference |
| Holly Barcus | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship | |
| Shawn Hutchinson and Bradley Rundquist | First Place, Student Poster Competition, Remote Sensing and GIS Specialty Groups, Association of American Geographers | |
| 1998 | Bradley Rundquist | First Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference |
| Nancy Leathers | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship | |
| Nancy Leathers | Third Place, Student Paper Competition, Applied Geography Conference | |
| Shawn Hutchinson | Second Place, Student Poster Competition, Remote Sensing and GIS Specialty Groups, Association of American Geographers | |
| 1997 | Shawn Hutchinson | Earth Systems Science Fellowship, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
| Bradley Rundquist | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship | |
| 1996 | John McKenzie | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship |
| 1995 | Shawn Hutchinson | Environmental Fellowship, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) |
| 1994 | Becky Schuerman | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship |
| 1991 | Malcolm Ponte | Gamma Theta Upsilon Buzzard Scholarship |