In an effort to improve the chances of success of future Cottrell Scholar applications, we have chosen six successful teaching proposals which are representative of the best we have received in the past few years. They illustrate a variety of styles and approaches which convinced us of the PI’s passion for teaching in the research university setting. These plans involve endeavors which range from activities close to an applicant’s research interests to outreach work beyond the campus. Successful plans are multifaceted and directed largely toward the undergraduate level. We offer these as examples that illustrate a scholar’s understanding of his/her institutional culture and setting. Consequently these cannot and should not serve as templates for future submissions. The unique aspects of an applicant’s proposal move it forward, not adherence to the specific formats found in these examples.
2005 Cottrell Scholar Award: Pierre Bergeron, Department of Physics, University of Montreal: White Dwarf Stars as Cosmochronometers and Distance Indicators
2004 Cottrell Scholar Award: Seth M. Cohen, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego: A Bioinorganic Approach to Designing Improved Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibitors
2003 Cottrell Scholar Award: T. Daniel Crawford, Department of Chemistry, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University: Quantum Mechanical Studies of Chirality: Local Correlation Methods for Optical Rotation in Large Molecules
2003 Cottrell Scholar Award: Michael Hildreth, Department of Physics, University of Notre Dame: Enhancing the Potential for Higgs Discovery at the Fermilab Tevatron
2004 Cottrell Scholar Award: Rosa Alejandra Lukaszew, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Toledo: Investigating the Structural and Magnetic Properties of Nano-magnets
2003 Cottrell Scholar Award: Brian M. Stoltz, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology: New Innovations in the Teaching and Implementation of Synthetic Chemistry