The Sharon Meinholz Graduate Student Fund was established in memory of Sharon Meinholz. Sharon worked in the department office from 1978 to 1990. In 1990, she took on the graduate and undergraduate secretary role, which she filled until she passed away in 2004.
Sharon always enjoyed hearing of students’ travels, their research, and the successes they had in giving talks at professional meetings and conferences. She understood that these were important opportunities for students to share their work with geologists from all over the world and make connections to kick off their careers. This fund helps students attend scientific meetings to present their work and learn from the broader geological community. Your support will also help honor Sharon and her contributions to the department.
Our ambitious goal for Fill the Hill 2023 is to raise at least $25,000 to endow this fund and shore up student conference travel funding.
Drawing on alumni gift funds, the Department of Geoscience spends $500,000 annually for student scholarships, field camps, field trips, research, and new equipment. Our alumni are critical for sustaining these activities, which are central to our success. Every donation — small or large — is important and meaningful.