On behalf of the Associate Director for Natural Hazards Exercising the Delegated Authority of the Director, the Human Resources Office is requesting nominations for the honor awards listed below. These honor awards are a prestigious recognition that can be granted by the Department for career accomplishments, exceptional support of the Department or bureau mission, and bravery.
They are designed to bestow honor on an individual or group of individuals as an official recognition of achievement at all levels of the organization.
Each nomination must include a word document attachment in the Justification Section of the DI-451which can be located on Webforms. If the award is not listed on the DI-451, use the Other Awards box and fill in the title of the award. All nominations should be forwarded through the appropriate supervisory channels and must be endorsed by a member of the Executive Leadership Team (ELT).
The Honor Awards Guide contains the information you will need to submit your award nominations.
The awards below are organized according to their deadline date.
Award |
Details |
Deadline |
Send to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shoemaker Awards | The Shoemaker Lifetime Achievement Award is given to honor a scientist who creates excitement and enthusiasm for science among non-scientists. The Shoemaker Award for Communications Product Excellence recognizes information products that excel in communicating complex scientific concepts to internal or external non-technical audiences. |
February 14 and 28, 2023 All information pertaining to the Shoemaker Product Awards |
internal_communications@usgs.gov |
| Community for Data Integration Leadership and Innovation Award | Details | February 15, 2023 | cdi@usgs.gov |
| Rufus D. Catchings Diversity Outreach Award |
This award recognizes outstanding collaboration between a USGS employee or team and a partnering organization to share and encourage interest in science with minority or underserved students. |
March 2, 2023 | RDCOutreachAward@usgs.gov |
| USGS Environmental Achievement Award (For projects completed in FY22) |
This award is for 2021 accomplishments. To find information on this Award go to @theCore and search for Environmental Management on the A-Z Index. Once on the SharePoint site search for NRCAA. |
April 23, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) Awards |
To access the Office of Diversity & Equal Opportunity website, go to the A-Z Index on @theCore. |
May 31, 2023 | ecoleman1@usgs.gov |
| Dallas Peck Outstanding Emeriti Award | For Emeriti volunteers only; DI-451 not required |
May 31, 2023 | lbybell@usgs.gov |
| Exemplary Act Award | Details | May 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| John Wesley Powell Award | For private citizens/groups; DI-451 not required |
May 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Meritorious Service Award | Details | May 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Unit Award for Excellence of Service |
Details | May 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| James R. Balsley, Jr. Awards for Excellence in Technology Transfer |
Details on these awards are available internally only via the Office of Administration, Office of Policy and Analysis, or by email to the OPA staff at gs-a_opa@usgs.gov. |
May 31, 2023 | gs-a_opa@usgs.gov |
| Gary L. Hill Watercraft Safety Award |
Details | September 30, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Safety Award of Excellence (Individual and Group) | Details | September 30, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Excellence in Leadership and Early Career Excellence in Leadership Awards |
Nomination Process | December 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Aviation Award | Details | December 31, 2023 | djhart@usgs.gov |
| Citizen’s Award for Bravery | Details | December 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Distinguished Service Award | Details | December 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Valor Award | Details | December 31, 2023 | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Citizen’s Award for Exceptional Service |
For private citizens/groups; DI-451 not required |
No deadline | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Superior Service Award | Details | No deadline | gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov |
| Non-Departmental Level Aviation Awards |
(Award for In-Flight Action, Award for Safe Flying, Award for Significant Contribution to Aviation Safety, and Airwards) |
No deadline | saucier@usgs.gov |
Please mark your calendars to allow enough time to gather the information you need to write strong nominations, acquire appropriate reviews and signatures, and transmittal by the deadline dates. Please do not ask for extensions which delay the submittal of the other awards. Special care should be taken to ensure proper formatting, grammar and spelling before the awards are submitted.
Reminder – Please do not wait until someone is about to retire to nominate them for an Honor Award. Approval of the write up is only part of the process—certificates and medals can only be requisitioned and processed once the nomination has been signed by the appropriate signatory (SSA/Director; MSA/Assistant Secretary for Water and Science; DSA/Secretary of the Interior). We will always do our best to accommodate but cannot realistically ensure the award will be approved and processed in time. Thank you.
If you have any comments or questions or need samples of awards, please contact gs-hc_honor_awards@usgs.gov.