Ten-year anniversaries traditionally call for gifts of tin or aluminum. Forย Mace Brown, the 10thย anniversary of theย Mace Brown Museum of Natural Historyย atย the College of Charlestonย is being markedย by aย multi-yearย gift to support aย newย research fellowshipย to takeย the museumโs research and community outreach to the next level.ย ย
Brownโs gift may not have beenย intended as anย anniversary present, butย his investment into the museum, which is named in his honor, is intentional nonetheless. After informally funding research activities for the past six years,ย Brown establishedย the Mace Brownย Museumย Research Fellowshipย to provide a steadier stream of resources toย support a summer faculty stipend, research activities and travel to professional conferences.ย ย
Theย recipient of the inaugural Mace Brown Museum Research Fellowship is Robertย Boessenecker, a research associate and adjunct instructor in the Collegeโsย Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences.ย Boessenecker is no stranger to Mace Brown or the museum; he has known of Brown and his collection since before first visiting the College as a doctoral studentย in 2012.ย Boesseneckerย has beenย involved in myriad museum-based researchย projectsย since joining the College in the fall of 2015. ย
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In his role as a research fellow, Boesseneckerโs primary responsibilitiesย includeย the study of the evolution of whales and dolphins by researching the fossils within the museum, preparing multiple manuscripts on fossil cetaceans for peer review, improving the collections andย promoting the museumย through social mediaย outreachย and public lectures. He also serves as a mentor to aspiring undergraduate paleontology students in the School of Sciences and Mathematics.ย
The opportunities the collection at the museum offer is one of the main reasons Boessenecker chose to come to the College after earning his doctorate.
โThe collection we have here is one of the most important resources available for learning about whale and dolphin evolution,” he says. โMace is responsible for bringing a number ofย amazingย fossils into the public trust and the scientific value of this collection is unparalleled. He is an altruistic collector in that he didnโt amass a unique and significant collection just to sell them. He always wanted to give them to a place where scientists and non-scientists can learn from them and grow their interest in our ancient marine life forms.โย
Read the full story on Momentum, CofC’s digital philanthropy publication.