The Keck Geology Consortium, comprising 18 primarily undergraduate institutions, will offer summer research experiences for ~51 undergraduates each of three years, building on 23 years of successful programming involving over 1100 students (56% women). Students will be recruited from the 18 schools, and 30% will come from non-Consortium institutions. Summer research projects will be continued in the following academic year as independent study projects, with presentations at the culminating Keck Annual Research Symposium in the spring. Students will publish short contributions in the annual proceedings volume and will be encouraged to present their work at regional and national disciplinary meetings. The proposed projects involve a mix of field and laboratory research experiences that will make meaningful scientific contributions in the areas of structural geology, paleontology and paleoecology, and paleoclimatology as well as igneous and metamorphic petrology, sedimentology and stratigraphy, volcanology, geomorphology and geoarchaeology. The yearlong Keck Consortium program enhances students' scientific and geoscience research skills and provides a robust scientific experience culminating in presentation of results at the annual research symposium and publication in the proceedings volume.
The site is co-funded by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.
The Keck Geology Consortium is a multi-college collaboration focused on enriching undergraduate education through development of high-quality research experiences. The Consortium has been a fundamental component of the undergraduate research landscape over the last twenty-seven years. In addition to research projects, the Consortium program includes the annual Keck Research Symposium in Geology and publication of a Symposium proceedings volume. Projects for 2011-2014 More than 150 students participated in the following projects during 2011-2014: 2011-2012 Projects 1) Tectonic evolution of the Chugach-Prince William terrane, south-central Alaska. Faculty: John Garver (Union College), Cam Davidson (Carleton College 2) Origins of Sinuous and Braided Channels on Ascraeus Mons, Mars. Faculty: Andrew de Wet (Franklin & Marshall College), Jake Bleacher (NASA-GSFC), Brent Garry, Smithsonian. 3) Tropical Holocene Climatic Insights From Records of Variability in Andean Paleoglaciers. Faculty: Donald Rodbell (Union College), Nathan Stansell, Byrd Polar Research Center. 4) Eocene Tectonic Evolution of the Teton-Absaroka Ranges, Wyoming. Faculty: John Craddock (Macalester College), Dave Malone (Illinois State University). 5) Interdisciplinary Studies in the Critical Zone, Boulder Creek catchment, Front Range, Colorado. Faculty: David Dethier (Williams College). 6) Depth-Related Patterns of Bioerosion: St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Faculty: Denny Hubbard and Karla Parsons-Hubbard (Oberlin College). 7) The Hrafnfjordur central volcano, Northwestern Iceland. Faculty: Brennan Jordan (University of South Dakota), Meagen Pollock (The College of Wooster. 8) Sediment Dynamics of the Lower Connecticut River. Faculty: Suzanne O’Connell and Peter Patton (Wesleyan University). 9) Anatomy of a Mid-Crustal Suture: Petrology of the Central Metasedimentary Belt Boundary Thrust Zone, Grenville Province, Ontario. Faculty: William Peck (Colgate Univ.), Steve Dunn (Mt. Holyoke College), Michelle Markley (Mt. Holyoke College). 2012-2013 Projects 1) Tectonic evolution of the flysch of the Chugach terrane, south central Alaska. Faculty: Cam Davidson (Carleton College), John Garver (Union College). 2) Middle to Late Miocene eruptive and climatic history in the Grande Ronde Valley, Northeast Oregon. Faculty: Nicholas Bader & Kirsten Nicolaysen (Whitman College). 3) Metasomatism and the tectonics of Santa Catalina Island: Testing new and old models. Faculty: Zeb Page (Oberlin College), Emily Walsh (Cornell College). 4) Paleoecology and paleoclimate of the Paleogene Chickaloon, Matanuska Valley, Alaska. Faculty: Chris Williams (Franklin & Marshall College), David Sunderlin (Lafayette College). 5) Interdisciplinary studies in the critical zone, Boulder Creek catchment, Front Range, Colorado. Faculty: David Dethier (Williams College). 6) Hell Creek Montana- -Biogeochemical carbon cycling in fluvial systems from bivalve shell geochemistry--using the modern to understand the past. Faculty David Gillikin (Union College), David Goodwin (Denison University). 7) Cretaceous to Miocene evolution of the northern Snake Range metamorphic core complex: Assessing the slip history of the Snake Range Decollement and spatial variations in the timing of footwall deformation, metamorphism, and exhumation. Faculty Martin Wong (Colgate Univ.), Phil Gans (Univ. of California, Santa Barbara). 8) The role of groundwater in the flooding history of Clear Lake, Wisconsin. Faculty: Susan Swanson (Beloit College), Justin Dodd (Northern Illinois University). 9) Paleoenvironmental records and early diagenesis of marl lake sediments: A case study from Lough Carra, western Ireland. Faculty: Anna Martini (Amherst College), Tim Ku (Wesleyan University). 2013-2014 Projects 1) Magnetic and Geochemical Characterization of In Situ Obsidian, New Mexico. Faculty: Rob Sternberg (Franklin & Marshall College), Joshua Feinberg (Univ. Minnesota), Steven Shackley (Univ. California, Berkeley), Ellery Frahm (Univ. of Sheffield). 2) Tectonic Evolution of the Flysch of the Chugach Terrane on Baranof Island, Alaska. Faculty: John Garver (Union College), Cameron Davidson (Carleton College). 3) Evaluating Extreme Weather Response in Connecticut River Floodplain Environment. Faculty: Robert Newton (Smith College), Anna Martini (Amherst College), Jon Woodruff (Univ. Massachusetts-Amherst). 4) A Geobiological Approach to Understanding Dolomite Formation at Deep Springs Lake, CA. Faculty: Jason Tor (Hampshire College), David Jones (Amherst College). 5) Potential Effects of Water-Level Changes on on Island Ecosystems: A GIS Spatiotemporal Analysis of Shoreline Configuration. Faculty: Kim Diver (Wesleyan Univ.). 6) P?hoehoe Lava on Mars and the Earth: A Comparative Study of Inflated and Disrupted Flows. Faculty: Andrew de Wet (Franklin & Marshall College), Chris Hamilton (Univ. Maryland), Jacob Bleacher (NASA, GSFC). 7) The Geomorphic Footprint of Megathrust Earthquakes: A Field Investigation of Convergent Margin Morphotectonics, Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica. Faculty: Jeff Marshall (Cal Poly Pomona), Tom Gardner (Trinity University), Marino Protti (OVSICORI-UNA). 8) Holocene and Modern Climate Change in the High Arctic, Svalbard Norway. Faculty: Al Werner (Mt. Holyoke College ), Steve Roof (Hampshire College), Mike Retelle, (Bates College). Students completed field and/or laboratory work during the summer, continued their research during the academic year with a faculty mentor and presented their research to the academic community at the annual Keck Geology Consortium Symposium. Over 46 mostly student presentations were made at regional, national and international disciplinary meetings during 2011-2014 and are listed on the Keck website. Twenty two articles from the 2011-2014 funding cycle are published, in review or submitted, including. All Keck publications are listed on our website (keckgeology.org/publications).
