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STUDENT/EARLY CAREER PROFESSIONAL UPDATE
2020 GSA J. David Lowell Field Camp

Scholarship Awardee Report

Maria T. Solis

I’ve been waiting for many years to attend field camp and I
finally got the chance of a lifetime! Thanks to the J. David Lowell
Scholarship I received from the Geological Society of America,
I was able to take two months of field camp at the University of
Texas at San Antonio, pay the necessary tuition, and go to the
assigned places with the right equipment, to include dressing the
part of a true geologist! Although COVID-19 was rampant and still
is as I type this, we took all the necessary precautions. Instead of
going to Montana as planned, we got to explore the geology of
Texas. I never knew how incredible the geology of Texas was until
I saw it with my own eyes. We had to wear our masks and social
distance while hiking and mapping, and we went to the field mini-
mally as necessary to reduce our chances of contracting the disease,
but the learning was still intense, and the project maps, cross sec-
tions, presentations, and research papers were very challenging.
I just finished my last project today and will put in the final touches Solis studying and mapping conglomerates in Wilson County.
in the next day or so. There were two parts to field camp this
summer, the first of which was in June, and the second in July. In July, we had three projects, all in Texas, around the eastern
For June, we studied and did presentations on the creation and ulti- portion. The first was a study of the igneous intrusions of Uvalde
mate demise of the Manikewan Ocean in the Canadian Shield using County, where we each had to travel in our own vehicles to social
virtual research methods. The second project involved creating a distance. The next project involved the study of the ancient deltas
cross section of the geology between Del Rio, Texas, and Alpine, of the Wilson County geology during the Eocene. The final proj-
Texas, utilizing all the virtual tools available to us. I traveled Highway ect was a study of metamorphic rocks in the Burnet, Texas, area.
90 taking pictures, measurements, and making lots of stops, which Being in the Texas heat in July was difficult but bearable.
was lengthy but worth it. I was shocked at the amount of information Although this was different than anything I’ve ever been
I learned in June, especially after I finished the cross section (I didn’t through, it taught me a lot about Texas and the structures within
know the elevation rose so dramatically or that there were lots of folds the geology. The reason I chose the profession of geology was
under our feet!), but there was more to follow. All while I was still because I love it so much and always wanted to know more (what
working at my job in support of stopping COVID-19. are the secrets of the rocks and the beautiful landscapes I see?).
It was all possible thanks to the people who helped me to advance,
and to those who, without knowing me, gave me this opportunity,
for which I am thankful always!

Note: If you are able to help students like Maria attend field camp
and pursue their geoscience training, you can make a gift now at
https://gsa-foundation.org/fund/field-camp-opportunities or
contact Debbie Marcinkowski at +1-303-357-1047, dmarcinkowski@
geosociety.org, for more information.

To apply for a J. David Lowell Field Camp Scholarship, go to
https://www.geosociety.org/fieldcampawards.

Solis mapping an outcrop in Uvalde County in July 2020.

24 GSA Today | February 2021