Call for Submissions:  Rural Sociological Society Awards
Deadline:  February 16, 2023

 

The RSS Awards Committee is seeking submissions for the following awards (scroll down for details):

  • The Olaf Larson Graduate Student Paper Award
  • Lawrence Busch Award for Graduate Student Research on Food and Agriculture
  • MA/MS, PhD, and Early Career Research Award
  • The Fred Buttel Outstanding Scholarly Achievement Award 2023 (Book)
 
The Olaf Larson Graduate Student Paper Award
The purpose of the Olaf Larson Graduate Student Paper Award is to enhance the involvement of graduate students in the RSS annual meeting, and to support their professional development. The nominee must be a current RSS member. The paper must be accepted for presentation at the RSS annual meeting in the year the award is made. The paper may be co- authored with another graduate student who is a RSS member, but not with a faculty member. Papers should be of normal journal article length and format (12 pt font, double-spaced, 20-30 pages inclusive). Masters theses and dissertations will not be considered. This award includes a $300 prize, 3 nights lodging at the 2023 RSS conference, and one-year membership in RSS.
Submit the following materials by February 16, 2023 to Kenneth L. Robinson, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice, 132 Brackett Hall, Clemson, SC 29634.  Email submissions of compiled .pdf application packets encouraged: [email protected]
  1. One electronic copy of the completed paper.
  2. A current version of the author's vita.
  3. A letter from the author’s faculty advisor or department chair certifying graduate student status.
 
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Lawrence Busch Award for Graduate Student Research on Food and Agriculture
The recipient of this award shall engage in social research on issues related to food and/or agriculture. The research may be of domestic or international relevance and shall have been approved by the appropriate offices of the student’s institution. The award shall be given directly to the recipient and not to any institution.
Proposal packets should include all of the following:
1. A short cover letter. The cover letter should include a paragraph explaining how the thesis/dissertation/research will influence the applicant’s future work related to food and agriculture.
 
2. The proposal. The proposal, which includes the budget and budget justification, is limited to no more than 5 single-spaced pages of the research to be undertaken using a 12-point font and 1inch margins. The applicant should include an itemized budget and a brief budget narrative. Note: references are not included in the 5-page limit. The proposal should include:
  • A well-defined problem statement
  • An abbreviated literature review
  • A section detailing research methods
  • A work-plan schedule
  • Plans for dissemination of findings
  • An itemized budget for the work planned
  • A brief budget justification narrative
  • Proposal must include a narrative budget justification.
  • Equipment purchases are not permitted with Endowment funds.
  • Please note that award sizes will vary based on performance of the endowment.  Because of limited funds and the relatively small dollar total of awards, RSS will not pay overhead charges to the host institution of the recipient.
  • The RSS Endowment Committee understands that individuals submitting proposals may seek additional funding from other sources. The committee requests that the budget narrative describe exactly which parts of the project would be supported by additional funds and which parts would be supported by Busch Award.
 
4. A short CV of no more than three pages.
 
5. Proposal packets submitted for the Lawrence Busch Graduate Student Research Award on Food and Agriculture must also include a letter from the student’s major professor or thesis/dissertation chair that addresses the project’s intellectual significance and the likelihood that work on the thesis/dissertation will be actively pursued during the current academic year. When nominating someone for any award, nominators should consider whether the candidate meets the standards outlined by the RSS Code of Ethics. RSS award winners are expected to meet these standards: https://www.ruralsociology.org/rss-ethics.
Complete applicant packets should be sent via email as a single .pdf file to Ken Robinson, Chair of the RSS Awards and Endowment Committee, [email protected].
 
Upon completion of his or her project, the award recipient is encouraged to provide a 500-word summary, which will be published on the Rural Sociological Society website.
 
*****
MA/MS, PhD, and Early Career Research Award
The RSS Master’s Thesis and Dissertation Research Award Competition
Graduate student members[1] of the Rural Sociological Society are eligible to apply for master’s thesis and Ph.D. dissertation research awards. Dissertation awards can be made for up to $5,000. Master’s thesis awards can be made for up to $2,500. Proposals approved for funding may receive budget allocations below the requested amounts, based on availability of funds and recommendations of the Endowment Committee.
 
The RSS Early Careers Research Awards Competition
Members of the Rural Sociological Society who received their Ph.D. on or after January 1, 2016 are eligible to apply for RSS Early Career Research awards. Because the size of these awards is modest, proposals will generally involve small-scale projects that will enhance opportunities for scholars to pursue expanded research efforts in the future. The Early Career Research awards have previously been made for up to $5,000.
 
Submission Guidelines for Awards Competitions
 
The deadline for submission of proposals and required supporting materials is February 16, 2023. Proposals received after that date will not be reviewed or considered for funding. Submit the following materials to Kenneth L. Robinson, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice, 132 Brackett Hall, Clemson, SC 29634.  Email submissions of compiled .pdf application packets encouraged: [email protected].  Nominees who are unable to meet these submission requirements and/or who cannot save their files in .pdf format should contact Ken Robinson (607) 227-8773 or at the email listed above at least two weeks in advance of the due date so that alternative arrangements for submission can be made.
When nominating someone for any award, nominators should consider whether the candidate meets the standards outlined by the RSS Code of Ethics. RSS award winners are expected to meet these standards: https://www.ruralsociology.org/rss-ethics.
Proposal packets should include all of the following:
1. A short cover letter. The cover letter should include a paragraph explaining how the thesis/dissertation/research will influence the applicant’s future work related to rural sociology.
 
2. The proposal. The proposal, which includes the budget and budget justification, is limited to a maximum of 10 double-spaced pages, using a 12-point font and 1-inch margins. Note: references are not included in the 10-page limit. The proposal should include:
  • A well-defined problem statement
  • An abbreviated literature review
  • A section detailing research methods
  • A work-plan schedule
  • Plans for dissemination of findings
  • An itemized budget for the work planned
  • A brief budget justification narrative
 
3. Budget notes
  • Proposal must include a narrative budget justification.
  • Equipment purchases are not permitted with Endowment funds.
  • Because of limited funds and the relatively small dollar total of awards, RSS will not pay overhead charges to the host institution of the recipient.
  • The RSS Endowment Committee understands that individuals submitting proposals may seek additional funding from other sources. The committee requests that the budget narrative describe exactly which parts of the project would be supported by additional funds and which parts would be supported by RSS Endowment Funds.
 
4. A copy of the applicant’s vita.
 
5. Proposal packets submitted for the Master’s Thesis and Dissertation Research Awards must also include a letter from the student’s major professor or thesis/dissertation chair that addresses the project’s intellectual significance and the likelihood that work on the thesis/dissertation will be actively pursued during the current academic year. When nominating someone for any award, nominators should consider whether the candidate meets the standards outlined by the RSS Code of Ethics. RSS award winners are expected to meet these standards: https://www.ruralsociology.org/rss-ethics.
Submit the following materials by February 16, 2023 to Kenneth L. Robinson, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice, 132 Brackett Hall, Clemson, SC 29634.  Email submissions of compiled .pdf application packets encouraged: [email protected]
 
Upon completion of their project, each RSS award recipient must provide a 500-word summary, which will be published on the Rural Sociological Society website.  Award winners are encouraged to attend the annual Awards Luncheon and be formally recognized for receiving an award.
 
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The Fred Buttel Outstanding Scholarly Achievement Award 2023 (book)[GS2] 
 
The purpose of the Fred Buttel Outstanding Scholarly Achievement Award is to recognize outstanding scholarship in the form of a book or article (alternating years for each format) that demonstrates excellence in scholarly work in the same spirit as that exemplified by the late Fred Buttel. For the 2023 award, the committee seeks nominations for outstanding scholarly books that advance the field of rural sociological knowledge. The book can have been published by any academic press but must have been published in 2021 or 2022.   Please note that award sizes will vary based on the performance of the endowment.
Submit the following materials by February 16, 2023 to Kenneth L. Robinson, [GS3] Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice, 132 Brackett Hall, Clemson, SC 29634.  Email submissions of compiled .pdf application packets are encouraged: [email protected]
  1. A letter of nomination from the author, publisher, or other relevant source. The letter should specify the contribution of the work to Rural Sociology in general and to relevant subfields.
  2. A current version of the author’s vita.
  3. A copy of the nominated book for review by the committee.