Norman Hackerman Award Guidelines

The Welch Foundation's Norman Hackerman Award in Chemical Research was established to recognize the accomplishments of chemical scientists in Texas who are in their early careers and to serve as an encouragement to those who are embarking on careers dedicated to increasing our fundamental understanding of chemistry. The award is intended for the personal benefit of the recipient and carries no requirement for future services as a condition of receiving it.

The award will be made on an annual basis, when warranted, to a scientist conducting chemical research in Texas.

A nominee must have spent the most recent three (3) years ending September 30, 2023 doing chemical research in Texas. On June 30 of the year of the award, a candidate for the award must be within 10 years of his or her initial appointment as an assistant professor or equivalent. For example, for the 2025 award, the initial appointment of the candidate as an assistant professor or equivalent must have begun no earlier than July 1, 2015. Directors and officers of the Foundation and members of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) of the Foundation may not make nominations or submit supporting letters to eligible nominations, nor are they eligible to receive the award.

Any person may submit a nomination for consideration, though no person may nominate oneself. All nominations must be submitted using the proposalCentral application portal. Detailed instructions can be downloaded from Welch1.org or from https://proposalCENTRAL.com. The nomination must include (a) a cover letter, (b) a detailed description of the basis for the nomination, (c) a complete curriculum vitae including the nominee’s date of birth, the date of initial appointment as an assistant professor or equivalent, and the year the nominee began doing chemical research in Texas, (d) a complete publications listing of the nominee, (e) digital reprints of three to five of the nominee’s most important research publications, and (f) three supporting letters from individuals in the nominee’s field.

Nominations must be received by 12:00 p.m. CDT. September 15. If September 15 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the nomination must be received on the preceding Friday by 12:00 p.m. CDT.

Questions should be emailed to nhacr@welch1.org.

The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) of the Foundation will review all complete nominations that are received by the Foundation by the deadline and will consider whether or not any nominee or nominees are worthy of the award. The SAB will recommend to the Board of Directors not more than two nominees they determine are qualified to receive the award and the Board of Directors will make the final selection.

The award will be presented at a springtime function on the campus of the recipient’s institution. The current monetary amount of the award is $100,000.