We invite applications for two scholarships of $2000 each to be awarded each year. The Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) sponsors the Idaho Native Plant Society Scholarship Program to support college or university students interested in native plants and plant communities. In alignment with our INPS mission, we want to award our scholarships to students interested in understanding and appreciating our native flora. In 2023 we awarded two scholarships, one to an undergraduate and one to a graduate student.

Eligibility

Scholarships will be available for full- or part-time undergraduates or graduate students enrolled in any accredited 2- or 4-year college or university in Idaho. Student applicants must be registered for a minimum of 6 college or university semester credits (or equivalent) at the time of the award.

Student applicants must demonstrate an interest in botany, horticulture, forestry, rangeland ecology, environmental science, agriculture, conservation, science education, natural resources, or a closely related program. They must be pursuing a major in one of these fields.

Application Form

To apply, please complete the application form with student information, relevant experience, and a personal statement. Student applicants must solicit a letter of recommendation from a faculty member or other mentor who can speak to the student’s character and goals specific to the scholarship. Letters should be sent directly to INPSScholarship@gmail.com.

• 2024 Application Form 2-page 8.5×11 pdf (Due date is March 15, 2024) revision uploaded 1/16/2024

Recipients

2024

Erika Stewart is a Ph.D. Student at Idaho State University. As a PhD student, she is doing research for the Idaho Transportation Department to identify roadside restoration methods that simultaneously reduce weed invasion and fire hazard while enhancing pollinator diversity, habitat, and abundance. Erika’s advisor describes her as a leader, mentor, and advocate for both
undergraduate and graduate students. She currently volunteers as President of Idaho State University’s Biology Graduate Student Association and recently served as the graduate representative on the ISU Biology Department’s Tenure and Promotion Committee. She also volunteers hosting summer camps for
kids.

Elizabeth Mandala is in her senior year studying Biology, Ecology and Conservation at Idaho State University. She founded the ISU Botany Club and
currently serves as its President. The club is now an official student chapter of the Botanical Society of America. Elizabeth is also Vice Chair of the High Desert Chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists. Since returning to college in 2021, Elisabeth has worked as a research assistant helping several different graduate students with their Master’s projects. Following graduation, she will continue
research from her senior thesis that she expects will culminate in writing a flora of southeastern Idaho for her master’s Thesis. She intends to use her scholarship award to enroll this summer in ISU’s Field Botany course to provide a better foundation for her to contribute to the Idaho Botanical Foray that will be hosted by ISU in June.

You may read more about them in the June 2024 issue of Sage Notes.

2023

We congratulate Abigail Moody and Richard Rachman, the first recipients of the Idaho Native Plant Society Scholarship.

Abigail Moody, our undergraduate student recipient, is a sophomore at Boise State University studying Biology with an emphasis in Evolution, Ecology and Behavior along with an additional emphasis in Secondary Education and a Teaching Endorsement in Natural Sciences. She will be collecting data and conducting genetic analysis on native European populations of ventenata grass which is an invasive in western rangelands.

Richard Rachman, is a graduate student recipient. In his current endeavors as a Ph.D. student in the Caughlin Lab at Boise State University, he will be investigating the use of drone imagery to understand changes in the spatial distribution of plant communities after wildfires.

You may read more about each of them on page 18 of the September 2023 Sage Notes.

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