
• by Paul Slocumb •
On Tuesday, Dec. 4, the Big Bend Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas donated $10,000 to Sul Ross State University’s A. Michael Powell Excellence Fund. The donation will provide scholarships of $500-$1000 per year to Biology graduate students pursuing the study of botany with a focus on plants of the Trans-Pecos region. Since 2003, the Big Bend Chapter and individual members have donated more than $25,000 to the Powell Excellence Fund which they created.
The namesake of the scholarship fund, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biology Dr. A. Michael Powell, retired from his full-time Sul Ross professorship in 2003; however, Powell remains director of the University’s A. Michael Powell Herbarium and continues to publish highly regarded scholarly works. In addition to being a founding member of the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute, Powell is a two-time recipient of the Donovan Stewart Correll Award from the Native Plant Society of Texas.