| NORTHEASTERN SECTION ENDOWMENT FUND ANNOUNCEMENT  The Management Board of the Northeastern Section GSA has approved a 5 year fund raising program to increase its endowment fund in the Geological Society of America Foundation to $500,000. The fund raising cycle began at the 42nd annual meeting in Durham, New Hampshire and will conclude with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2012. The Northeastern Section Endowment Fund was established in March 2001 with a transfer of $25,000 from the Section’s operating account to GSA Foundation. As of December 31, 2006 the value of the Northeastern Section Endowment Fund has grown to $65,627. The growth is due to return on the investment combined with individual gifts.
Use of the Endowment Fund Proceeds:- Increase the Kenneth Weaver Student Travel Fund from $4,500 per year to $9,000 per year. Currently, the $4500 spent annually from the section operating account is matched by an additional $4,500 from GSAF.
- Increase the amount available for undergraduate student research from $5,000 per year to $7,500 per year.
- Provide honoraria or support for speakers or plenary sessions at the Northeastern Section’s Annual Meeting.
- Subsidize professional and student registration fees at the Northeastern Section’s Annual Meeting.
Did You Know- Between March of 1997 and March of 2007 the Northeastern Section has provided travel support to more than 860 students who presented the results of their research at both section and national GSA meetings. The amount provided to student presenters for travel exceeds $83,000.
- The total amount available to support student presenters has not changed since 1997.
- To date all travel and research awards have been made entirely from the section’s operating account.
- The northeastern section awarded 37 student presenters $128 to the annual meeting in 1997 and 81 student presenters were awarded $55 to the Philadelphia meeting in 2006.
- Between 1998 and 2006 the Northeastern Section funded 57 undergraduate research projects totaling more than $45,000.
- Between 65% and 75% of the section’s annual non-meeting related expenditures are for the two student programs.
- Student registration fees at the annual section meetings are effectively subsidized and kept low because of careful budgeting by the local committee chairs.
- Student registration fees have risen from $27 in 2002 to $50 in 2007.
- Professional registration fees have risen from $74 to $145 between 2002 and 2007.
- Meeting facility charges in 2002 were $19,735 and in 2006 meeting facility charges were $37,622.18. Meeting facility rental in 2007 is expected to exceed $45,000.
Stephen Pollock Secretary-Treasurer, NE Section http://www.geosociety.org/sectdiv/ 
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