MICRA established the Young Professionals Travel Grant in 2009 to provide professional staff members of MICRA’s member agencies who have recently begun their professional careers (< 5 years) with travel funds to attend professional meetings or conferences that they would not otherwise be able to attend. The MICRA Executive Board may elect to award one travel grant for reimbursement of actual expenses up to $1,000, depending on the availability of funding and applications received each year.
Applications for the following calendar year may be submitted beginning July 1 and the deadline for submissions will be January 15th, annually. Applications should be completed using the provided form and include a detailed abstract (not to exceed 1-page). A letter requesting support from the appropriate agency administrator accompanying the application is strongly recommended. Completed applications should be submitted to MICRA.
The MICRA Executive Board will rank applications using a weighted scoring system. Applications will be evaluated based on the following:
- Abstract
- Scientific value
- Relevance to large river fisheries and aquatic resource management
- Importance to MICRA
- Applicant’s reason for attending meeting (e.g., poster or oral presentation, training or workshop, active role in technical committee or other working group meeting)
- Administrator or supervisor’s written recommendation
The MICRA Chair will notify the successful candidate and the respective agency administrator in writing within 30-days of the application deadline. In the event that the annual travel grant is not awarded, the MICRA Executive Board will consider applications for the travel grant on an individual basis throughout the remainder of the calendar year.
Applications received by July 15th, 2022, will be given priority consideration. Applications received after July 15th will be given consideration on a case-by-case basis until the end of the year as long as the funding has not been awarded.
Past Recipients
2023: Patrick Padilla, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Determining Dam Passage and Inter-River Movement of Black Carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) via Otolith Microchemistry
2022: Sam Schaick, Illinois Natural History Survey: Catfish and Buffalo Populations in Upriver Versus Downriver Pools of the Illinois River
2018: Daniel Roth, Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Eastern Illinois University: Spatiotemporal Variation and Abiotic Influences in Asian Carp Reproduction in Large River Tributaries
2017: Nicholas Kramer, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism; Southeast Missouri State University: An Approach for Assessing Paddlefish Populations Using Mark-Recapture Information
2016: Andrew Bueltmann, Indiana Department of Natural Resources: American Eel Habitat Use and Timing of Freshwater Entrance in the Mississippi River
2015: Ryan Hupfeld, Iowa Department of Natural Resources: Natal Origin and Movement Patterns of Paddlefish within the Mississippi River Basin
2014: Patrick O’Rouke, Georgia Department of Natural Resources: Black Bass Species Shifts in Three Tennessee Valley Authority Reservoirs in North Georgia
2014: Hilary Meyer, South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks: The Business of Fishing: Use and Satisfaction of Anglers on a Large Reservoir
2013: No applications received; not awarded
2012: Sandra Clark-Kolaks, Indiana Department of Natural Resources: Recovery of the West Fork White River following a major fish kill in 1999, Indiana
2011: Curtis Wagner, Ohio Division of Wildlife: Spatial and Temporal Variation of Black Bass Population Dynamics in the Upper Ohio River: Insights from Five Years of Standardized Sampling
2010: Caleb Schnitzler, Iowa Department of Natural Resources: Age and growth of flathead catfish from Pools 12 and 13 of the Upper Mississippi River