MochaMocha

F1

Spoeaking of going crazzzzy - since we still know nothing about the EPA .... did you ask them about the Nancy Foster Scholarship - or another program?

It's always the third reviewer! Thought everyone who already got their package of doom might like this video - very funny

Has anyone really not heard about any phone calls? I find this to be concerning, because in previous years people's friends or lab mates posted something by now. That said nothing for me yet, applied under F1

I take the "93 views" and no comments as a "haven't heard anything yet"....

yay! (unless we all got rejected)

I sent a letter to my senators and local congressman (alreay got a response - but Texas is a little iffy about the EPA). I also submitted a letters to: White house: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact. Current EPA administrator is Bob Perciasepe: http://epazilla.com/...pe-202_564_4700 Additional details on wiki:https://en.wikipedia.../Bob_Perciasepe (get your own) Senator's information:http://www.senate.go...enators_cfm.cfm *(copied some info from dubstep:drop da NaOH previous post!) Any other contact suggestions from anyone? Note: In my EPA email – I wrote that I just wanted to express that the fellowship was important to me and that I thought it was at risk b/c of budget cuts; that my email was show my support. They may still cut funding this year - so we still send emails/letters or call BEFORE they make up their minds. If they decide to cut funding, we don't be able to make them undo it. But if we let them know before they do it, then we might stand a chance. We will be ignored if we don't say something! Let’s make some noise people!

I don't want the last post to be a giving up post. Do your part people! This is what's wrong with our system- lets at least try! Also- checkout dubstep's post about the correct EPA contact.

Hey All - so I had some time to get started (mostly b/c this is just on my mind, now) - so here is what I wrote thus far. I think we should send this to all state congressmen/senators, the white house and Lisa Jackson (at the EPA - she might be able to package letters together to make our case). Let's make this happen people! There is no point in just camplaining if we're not going to try to do anything! Dear (INSERT NAME), I recently submitted an application to the EPA Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellowships (2013) this past November. I spent several weeks preparing my application, in hopes of receiving one of these prestigious awards. This fellowship is in jeopardy, however, as the budget cuts associated with the sequester will cut vital funding to the EPA. Though I may not receive one of these wards, I think that it is important for this program to continue. These awards are just a “drop in the bucket” in our country’s budget compared to other programs (only about 80 are awarded) – but they have the potential to greatly impact the success of young scientists. The EPA-STAR Fellowship offers assistance to graduate students for research costs and provide networking opportunities that otherwise would be unavailable. As research funding becomes more limited for many professors, including my own, many students are expected to cover some research costs (with personal funds) – in addition to rising tuition costs. The funding opportunities for graduate students are greatly limited in comparison to the programs available to undergraduate students, but this fellowship provides one of the best opportunities for young researchers who are studying energy, water quality, air quality, and climate change. Cutting these funds will affect me personally because ….. Everyone agrees that we need clean air and water, and this fellowship helps future scientists gain the skills and experience they need. This type of work can be used by policy-makers to make appropriate decisions about product safety, alternative energy resources and ecosystem services – all of which benefit our country. Please reconsider the budget cuts that will be made at the EPA, as these cuts will affect future research that is important for maintaining healthy ecosystems and resources that are enjoyed by all Americans. Thank you for your time and consideration,

I am resubmitting my proposal to everyone reading this forum! Lets write letters AND emails to our state reps, the white house, AND the EPA (they could likely use copies of ourletters for something). I am thinking I can write a generic intro, then post it on here. Everyone can edit it, or take it as is (or not use it) - but we can all open with a couple of sentences and then tack on a paragraph about what the fellowship would/could do for us. I will do this on Wednesday, if y'all (giving my Texas roots away) want to do this. If someone has time before then, take the lead! I think if they get 1300 letters from all of us we might be able to make some noise? Let's try to pull what an "FAA" move!

Is no one friends with anyone that got a call yet? :/

Thanks for the link- I'm going to look at applying to one of these programs! And so it begins again

Ok I vote that we all write a letter to our reps AND obama about the importance of funding future scientists if they end up cancelling the fellowship this year. I don't have any hard evidence that it's canceled this year and in previous years I did not know anything this early. That said, I was rejected twice though I got pretty awesome (and helpful) reviews. I haven't heard anything from anyone that I know who also applied. Nothing in the mail/email yet either. I'm in Texas, for reference. Looks like we have entered the 'go crazy and wait' phase.

We know zis from the last few pages of messages. What we don't know is what it means exactly. It's all speculation.

I didn't get my rejection letter until the end of May last year. There were also ridiculous political things going on. So it may be a while yet (maybe).