AWARDS + HONORS

Dean Claudia Mora Named President-Elect of AGI

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is one of the leading professional organizations for geoscientists. This summer, the dean of the Jackson School of Geosciences Claudia Mora was elected by the AGI Board of Directors to be its next president. Mora will serve as president-elect over the next year and then begin her term as president in 2026.

The president serves as the institute’s ambassador and chief spokesperson, representing more than 40 scientific and professional organizations and a worldwide AGI membership of over a quarter-million earth, atmospheric and ocean scientists.

Mora joins a roster of AGI presidents from The University of Texas at Austin. They include Dean Emeriti Sharon Mosher (2012 2013), William Fisher (1990-1991), and Peter Flawn (1987-1988), as well as Scott Tinker (2015-2016), who served as director of the school’s Bureau of Economic Geology for over 20 years.

Research Professor Bridget Scanlon was among the 11 faculty members from The University of Texas at Austin who were elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Scanlon is the program director of the Center for Sustainable Water Resources at the school’s Bureau of Economic Geology and a world-leading authority on water resource use, storage and conservation.

The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) selected Professor Mrinal Sen as the 2024-2025 lecturer for its Distinguished Instructor Short Course (DISC). This honor selects an expert to give an eight-hour, one-day short course on a topic of current and widespread interest. The SEG DISC is presented at more than 25 locations around the world Sen’s short course will focus on machine learning in the geosciences and is titled: Physics and Data Driven Seismic Data Analysis: A Narrative of Two Approaches.

Leah Turner, the director of the Jackson School’s GeoFORCE outreach program, is the recipient of the 2024 Women in Energy Pinnacle Award. Presented by Hart Energy, the award celebrates a female leader in the energy industry who has demonstrated “exceptional achievement.” GeoFORCE is an award-winning program that helps introduce high school students from underserved areas of Texas to the geosciences through summer field trips, skill building and mentorship.