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Encouraging Diverse Young Geoscientists

In just three years since its launch, GSA’s On To the Future Program (OTF) has attracted students
and mentors and created an ongoing community of past participants who remain engaged with GSA
and persevere in the geosciences. OTF affirms GSA’s commitment to involve groups who are underrep-
resented in the geosciences through partial travel grants to graduate and undergraduate students to attend
their first Annual Meeting, covering the costs of meeting registration and one-year GSA membership.

Gift Ntuli, 2013 OTF recipient. Kayla Salazar, 2014 OTF participant. Timothy Shin, OTF donor.

Gift Ntuli was eager to attend the Annual Meeting to learn Timothy Shin received GSA travel grants and awards to present
about geoscience research and explore career options but had been research at the meeting before On To the Future existed; he was
nervous to do so. At the meeting, he was able to explore graduate also impacted by his attendance at the meeting and invited to
programs and career opportunities without the added cost of speak to GSA’s Diversity in the Geosciences Committee on how to
visiting institutions, and he felt prepared thanks to the OTF improve minority participation. He strongly recommended
student gatherings each day of the meeting. “The program coor- research and travel grants for students who could not otherwise
dinators continue to send informative newsletters with new come to the meeting. From this discussion, OTF was born. We are
opportunities. Therefore, OTF is not a one-time program. Instead, proud and honored that upon graduation, when Shin was hired as
it is a continual process, which commences by attending the a geologist at Hess and his wife at ExxonMobil, they “felt it was
meeting and proceeds throughout one’s professional development our duty to give back to GSA and make sure other students got the
in the geosciences.” Gift graduated from Colby College and went opportunities we did.”
on to receive the ExxonMobil/GSA Bighorn Basin Field Camp
Award. He is now at Baylor University in the geophysics master’s We invite you to join the meaningful example of Timothy and
program and spent last summer as an intern with Sandridge his wife in their committed, generous support of On To the Future.
Energy. We are eager to watch the continued progression for this
young, successful geoscientist. Donate now at gsafweb.org.
The Ge
Kayla Salazar did not know of another geology major in her Initiated in 2013 ological Society of Am
community college and was seeking career guidance. Her experi- On To the Future celebrates the GSA TODAY | www.geosociety.org/gsatodayerica®
ence at GSA led her to engineering geology and after attending the
meeting, she says, “I am now able to captivate job interviewers growing diversity of the
with my newly gained confidence and professionalism. I have GSA community and the importance
realized that being a woman in geology truly is possible with hard
work and perseverance. I was able to gain an internship working of GSA's student membership
for the city of Sacramento in their engineering department. The
OTF program sets up for nothing less than success and my newly
gained internship is proof of that.”

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