The Melbourne R. Carriker Student Research Grant is a competitive grant that is awarded annually to recognize a student's excellence in research in the area of shellfisheries. The Melbourne R. Carriker Student Research Grant is named in honor of one of the Association's most distinguished past Presidents and the person who formalized the regular publication of the society meeting notes as the Proceedings of the National Shellfisheries Association (Click here to read an interview with Dr. Carriker from the Rugters Oral History Archives).  The award is a competitive grant program to which NSA student members can apply for a $1250 grant for non-travel related expenses associated with undertaking their Master's thesis or Ph.D. dissertation research. Funding for the program comes from the general NSA revenues and the award is granted once per year with applications due November 30 each year. Click here for application information.

Grant Recipients

• Mickael Perrigault (2008) State Unviersity of New York, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.  Grant proposal title:  Comparative study of two defensins from Mercenaria mercenaria: recombinant production and gene expression after challenge with bacterial and protistan pathogens.
• Nature McGinn (2007) University of California, Bodega Marine Laboratory. Grant proposal title: Environmental contaminants and the multixenobiotic resistance system in model marine invertebrates.
• Helene Hegaret (2006) University of Connecticut, Department of Marine Sciences. Grant proposal title: Effect of harmful algae and parasites on protein expression in bivalve molluscs using a new proteomic technology.
• Dane Frank (2005) University of Connecticut, Department of Marine Sciences. Grant proposal title: An experimental approach to elucidate functional mechanisms of control in the bivalve pump.
• Daniel Spooner (2004) University of Oklahoma. Grant proposal title: Eco-physiology and ecological function of freshwater
  mussel assemblages in southern streams.
• Coren Milbury (2003) University of Delaware's College of Marine Studies. Grant Proposal title: Development of high-throughput genetic techniques for the assessment of restoration efforts using hatchery-produced oysters.
• Carol Rosetta (2002) University of Connecticut, Department of Marine Sciences. Grant proposal title: Effects of Chattonella spp. on commercially important bivalve molluscs
• Maille Lyons (2001) University of Connecticut, Department of Marine Sciences. Grant proposal title: The trophic fate of organic aggregates filtered by suspension feeding bivalves.
• Megan Stewart (2000) Leigh Marine Laboratory, Warkworth, New Zealand. Grant proposal title: Impact of habitat change on cockle populations in New Zealand.
• Gwynne Day Brown (1999) Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary. Grant proposal title: Identification, characterization and expression levels of serine protease gene(s) among cultured isolates of Perkinsus marinus.
• Rondi Butler (1998, inaugural year) Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, University of Maryland. Title of grant proposal: Investigation into a relationship between metallothionein (MT) gene expression and the immunotoxicity of cadmium in hemocytes from the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica.