The SSAR is pleased to announce the establishment of a new endowment in honor of Martha L. Crump that will support pre-college student scholars. Known to all as Marty, she is a behavioral ecologist and field biologist of the Neotropics who is also one of the most prolific writer of books about amphibians and reptiles of our generation. She was trained at the University of Kansas where she earned her PhD in 1974, based upon her pioneering study of reproductive strategies of a community of frogs at Santa Cecilia in the Upper Amazon Basin of Ecuador. She was a faculty member at the University of Florida during 1976–1992 and is currently an adjunct professor at both Utah State University and Northern Arizona University. A member of SSAR since 1967, Marty has held many important posts in the Society and served as President in 2019–2020. She organized the official start of the SSAR Pre-College Scholars Program in 2018 (supported by a generous grant from the family of Tristan Weinkle, DVM) and continues to mentor students in the program. Marty has remained active in this wildly popular program, the intent of which is to introduce budding herpetologists to professionals in our field and to possible careers in science. John Maerz (University of Georgia) currently directs the program. There is an academic-year series of discussions between budding herpetologists and leading professionals in our field using Zoom technology followed by a mentored program at the Society’s annual meeting for selected students; the first non-USA students (from Botswana and Mexico) attended in 2024. The anonymous donors of the Marty Crump Endowment have stipulated that non-USA students should be given preference for these funds.
Please join us in congratulating Marty on this singular honor, which recognizes her special interest in introducing young people (including children) to amphibians and reptiles. A more detailed announcement will appear in Herpetological Review.
