Nov. 29, 2007
Contact: Rita Mithchell, University Relations
Gibson receives Neil Miner Award
MARTIN, Tenn. –Dr. Michael Gibson, University of Tennessee at Martin professor of geology, recently received the Neil Miner Award at the annual Geological Society of America meeting in Denver, Colo.
The Neil Miner Award, established in 1953 by the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, recognizes those who have made exceptional contributions to the stimulation of interest in the earth sciences. Gibson, along with other award recipients, was honored with a luncheon and was listed on a plaque in the GSA Hall of Fame display at the conference.
Gibson’s current research projects include the following: paleoecology, depositional environments and biotic interactions of Devonian strata of West Tennessee; Cretaceous Coon Creek Formation; Pennsylvanian Morris Shale in Alabama; plant fossils from the Eocene clay deposits of West Tennessee, History of Tennessee Geology and Earth Science Education in Tennessee; and Geology of Belize, Central America.
“Dr. Gibson is a model teacher scholar,” said UT Martin Chancellor Tom Rakes. “His passion for teaching and focus on applied research are a perfect match for our campus.”
Gibson was named Distinguished Educator of the Year for 2006 by the Tennessee Science Teachers Association. It was his second from TSTA, having been named Distinguished Science Teacher for 2003 in the higher education division.
Other recognitions of Gibson’s efforts through the years include the Tennessee Earth Science Teaching Ptero Award in 2001. He was a UT Martin Featured Scholar and received the Hal and Alma Reagan Faculty Leave Award in 1998; was selected for the Cunningham Outstanding Teacher Scholar Award in 1995-96. Gibson received the UT Knoxville Department of Geology Incentive Award in 1988; UT Knoxville Chancellor's Citation for Extraordinary Professional Promise in 1987; the University of Tennessee Oak Ridge National Lab Science Alliance “Super” Research Fellowship for Academic Excellence in 1985-1986; and the Cardin Fellowship Award for Academic Excellence in 1984-1985.
Gibson earned a bachelor’s degree at the College of William and Mary, a master’s at Auburn University and a doctorate at the University of Tennessee. He has a long list of publications, papers and grants relative to both educational and geological research interest. Gibson currently serves as the GSA Southeast Section education coordinator, national education chair of the Paleontological Society and also serves the National Association of Geoscience Teachers. One of his most recent accomplishments at the state level includes getting Earth Science accepted as a science unit for entrance into Tennessee’s institutions of higher learning.
###
