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The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation

In support of graduate internships

The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation was established in 1984 in New York through a bequest from the estate of Margaret Sussman in memory of her mother, Edna Bailey Sussman. Margaret Sussman was a 1934 graduate of Smith College and a successful artist. Her father, Dr. Otto Sussman, was president and director of American Metal Company, the predecessor of AMAX, Inc. Mrs. Otto Sussman – Edna Bailey Sussman – became interested in environmental issues and Navajo Indian relations. It is fitting that the Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation sponsors research and internships that apply hard science to solving existing environmental problems.

The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation supports internships for students matriculated in graduate degree programs at eight institutions: SUNY ESF, the Colorado School of Mines, Duke University, George Washington University, Scripps Institute of Oceanography at University of California at San Diego, the University of Michigan, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and Yale University.

SUNY ESF graduate students benefit tremendously from continuing generosity of the Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation. Between 1985 and 2008, 317 SUNY-ESF graduate students received $1,142,718 to pursue "careers, the activities of which affect the environment, to understand the interaction of their chosen profession with environmental concerns."

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"Highlighted Opportunities"

The Mohonk Preserve... protecting a National Historic Landmark landscape in New York's Hudson River Valley region.

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Internship Requirements

The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation will provide support directly to students who are matriculated in graduate programs at SUNY ESF. Internships must meet the following conditions:

1. The Intern position would not have been filled if the organization had to compensate the Intern out of its own funds. The Sussman Fund will consider enriching internship support for those who receive less than minimal support.
2. The Intern will be utilized in an assignment involving the preservation of wildlife, the control of pollution, the preservation of natural land resources, or similar subject matter related to the environment.
3. The Intern will not be utilized in sales, production, or any other capacity not directly related to the environment.
4. The Intern will not act as a lobbyist, nor will the host organization be one whose primary function is to lobby.
5. The Internship will occur in the United States or its territories and have a US-focus. Sussman will not fund internships to study non-US species.
6. The Internship will not take place on the SUNY ESF campus or its properties.
7. SUNY-ESF may submit a maximum number of proposals that must meet minimal criteria as established by the Campus Coordinator. The maximum number of proposals accepted by the Sussman Trustees is established each year immediately prior to the application deadline. In 2009, ESF will be permitted to submit 12 proposals.

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Eligibility

The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation provides financial support for graduate students who are currently matriculated in graduate degree programs (MS, MF, MLA, MPS, or PhD) at SUNY ESF. Applications from students who are currently applying for admission into graduate programs cannot be accepted. Faculty, staff and undergraduate students are not eligible to apply for Sussman Funds.

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Amount of Support

In 2009, Sussman will pay a maximum of $12 per hour, for up to 35 hours per week, for 14 weeks. The scope of the work proposed should match the total funding requested. Applicants are required to provide a separate budget justification page in support of their requests.

Students may request support for internships conducted during any time of the year, but most internship proposals request funding within the summer. Sussman Internships do not provide tuition scholarships or health insurance benefits. These costs are the responsibility of the applicant. Sussman interns must report taxable income to the Internal Revenue Service.

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Application Requirements

Applicants must submit two copies of all materials. The applicant’s name should be on each page of the application and on supporting materials. Use standard, basic, copy or printer paper – no tinted or letterhead bond – for the cover, proposal, resume, and budget pages. [Students are advised to maintain copies of their proposals]:

1. Application Cover Page (Standard Format Attached)
   Specify the start and end dates of the internship period.
2. Proposal: Describe the work of the intended internship and how it will contribute to your educational and career goals
   What work will be performed during the internship and how will this work benefit the host organization? How will Sussman be acknowledged? Identify the host site supervisor by name and title and describe how the supervisor will evaluate the work. Statements longer than 500 words will not be accepted.
3. Letter from Faculty Advisor (Typically the Major Professor)
   Statements should be addressed to The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation. The faculty advisor’s statement must explicitly discuss the following: (1) the start and end date of the internship, (2) the relationship between the internship and the student's academic program of study, (3) the nature of the work to be accomplished, (4) the name of immediate internship host site supervisor, (5) how the internship will be supervised and evaluated.
4. Letter from Internship (host site) Sponsor (on official organization stationery with original signature)
   Statements should be addressed to The Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation, must be written by the person who will directly supervise the internship, and should explicitly discuss the following: (1) the start and end date of the internship, (2) the importance of the internship to the host organization, (3) the nature of the work to be accomplished, (4) how the internship will be supervised and evaluated.
5. ESF graduate transcript (including current semester)
   Request two copies of the SUNY-ESF transcripts sent from the College Registrar directly to 227 Bray, ATTN: Sussman.
6. Undergraduate transcript(s) (including transcripts for transfer credits)
   Please note that the ESF Registrar is prohibited by law from supplying transcripts of previosuly-earned degrees unless the degrees were conferred by ESF. Students must request original transcripts from their degree-granting institutions or submit legible copies of transcripts from transfer-credit institutions. Copies of official transcripts are acceptable, but web-based print-outs of unofficial transcripts are NOT acceptable.
7. Resume or curriculum vita
8. Budget justification page
   Describe how the total request was calculated, NOT how the money will be spent. Sussman will not accept proposals that request funds for travel, accommodations, supplies, or fees.

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Process and Deadlines

Early December 2008	Meet with faculty advisor to discuss the potential for appropriate internship experiences. Seek suggestions for possible hosts and supervisors. Seek a host organization. The organization may be public, private, or not-for-profit. It is appropriate for the student to use their academic plan to guide discussions with the potential supervisor at the host organization to reach agreement on the nature of the internship. Go to The ESF Job & Career Services website for environmental internship resources: http://www.esf.edu/jobs
Friday, 12 December 2008	Digital version (word file attchment to email) of final reports due from Sussman 2008 Interns
January 2009	Request copies of all undergraduate and graduate transcripts sent to 227 Bray Hall, ATTN: Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation. Meet with host organization to discuss and confirm internship. Solicit letters of support from advisor and supervisor.
Friday, January 16 2009	Informational Meeting, 11am, 217 Bray Hall Dean Scott Shannon is the Sussman representative for SUNY ESF. PLease direct questions to his attention.
Friday, 13 February 2009	Two (2) copies of complete applications due to Dean Scott Shannon, 227 Bray Hall.
Monday, 16 February 2009	Campus review of Sussman proposals and notification of proposal revisions to applicants by email.
End of April 2009	Decisions made by Sussman Trustees. Applicants notified by email
Friday, 11 December 2009	Two copies of final reports due from Sussman 2009 Interns

Final Report
Interns must submit a digital copy of a final report to the Sussman Fund by the deadline at the end of the semester following the internship. A lengthy final report is unecessary -- generally 3-5 pages are sufficient. Sussman internship reports will be posted on the ESF Sussman website effective summer 2009.

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Criteria for Campus Evaluation

• Completeness of application
  Are all required materials complete and with original signatures?
• Cover page
  Are the objectives clear and reasonable? [Objectives are measurable, precise, tangible statements. Goals are general intentions -- do not confuse the goal of the thesis/project with the objectives of the internship] Is the period of work specified and does it match the period indicated by the academic advisor and host supervisor?
• Quality of proposal
  Proposals must be 500 words or less, demonstrate good command of the English language in the active verb tense. Proposals must be written for an educated lay-audience, not for scholarly publication. Graduate students are expected to write to various audiences and explain in their own words the purpose of their research. If it is necessary and appropriate to include a citation, then the proposal is too technical.
• Quality and strength of letter from Academic Advisor
  [Faculty advisors must be full-time and eligible to serve as major professors at ESF – adjuncts and instructors are not eligible to serve as Sussman faculty advisors.
• Quality and strength of letter from Host Organization
  [Host must provide detailed support and evidence of direct supervision]
• Evidence of academic abilities – especially in subject areas directly related to the proposed internship
  [transcripts that show incomplete or failing grades, or evidence of academic or disciplinary action will not be considered]
• Reasonable duration of internship
  [internships for the full duration will be given priority.]

Remember, Sussman will not support work conducted at ESF, or its properties, or outside the US or its territories.

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2008 Internship Reports

Phillip Barber, "Aquatic Insect Communities in Central New York Rivers"

Christina Boser, "A Model to Describe Coyote Diet Selection"

Virginia Collins, "Catch the Nature Bug"

Brittany Cronk, "Distribution and Ecology of the Fungal Pathogen of Dicranum fulvum"

Amanda Dillon, "A Census and Study on Habitat Preference of Solitary Bees and Wasps in Central New York"

Michael Fishman, "Summer Habitat Selection of the Endangered Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis) In Central New York"

Lisa Kurian,"Informing Existing Environmental Problems through Hydrology Research:  An Internship With the Takshanuk Watershed Council"

Brienne Meyer, "Metallic Element Accumulation in Adirondack Mycorrhizal and Saprobic Macromycetes (Fungi) in Relation to Soil Characteristics"

Sam Quinn, "Factors Influencing the Distribution of Eastern Hellbenders in the Susquehanna River Watershed of New York State"

Jason Townsend, "Mercury in Terrestrial Environments: A Large-Scale Assessment of Bioaccumulation and Food Web Transfer In Three Habitat-Specialist Songbirds"