Also included in the April 24th Science Celebration event was the presentation of the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) Prize for the encouragement and enhancement of public understanding of science and technology. PERI, headed by President Jack Sommer, is a private, non-partisan, tax-exempt educational foundation whose objective is to support the growth of a free and open society based on the protection of individual rights and the recognition of individual responsibility.

Finalists for the prize included Sigma Xi members:
Dr. Paul W. Foos, UNC Charlotte Department of Psychology;
Dr. Paula Goolkasian, UNC Charlotte Department of Psychology;
Dr. Scott P. Hippensteel, UNC Charlotte Department of Geography & Earth Sciences; and
Dr. Todd R. Steck, UNC Charlotte Department of Biology

Jack Sommer, PERI President and Southeast Regional Director of Sigma Xi and 2003 PERI Prize winner Scott Hippensteel

The winner of the PERI Prize was UNC Charlotte Assistant Professor Scott Hippensteel of the university’s Department of Geography and Earth Sciences. He was awarded a $500 prize for a 1999 article published in the journal PALEO on a study of the evolution of Folly Island, SC. Participants were asked to submit previous published articles with a 400-500 word summary elucidating the nature of the research and its implication for society. A panel of judges unrelated to the Sigma Xi Chapter and experienced in media work selected the winner based on how well the summary was prepared for an interested, non-specialist general audience.

Congratulations to UNC Charlotte for its outstanding scholars!

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