Awards

Sloan Research Fellowships, established in 1955, are awarded annually by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation "in recognition of distinguished performance by early career researchers and their unique potential to make substantial contributions." One of the oldest programs of its kind in the United States, fellowships were initially awarded in physics, chemistry, and mathematics. Awards were later added in neuroscience (1972), economics (1980), computer science (1993), computational and evolutionary molecular biology (2002), and ocean sciences or earth systems sciences (2012). Winners of these two-year fellowships are awarded $75,000 to support their research.

Guggenheim Fellowships are grants awarded annually by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." The fellowships, which have awarded each year since 1925, are not open to students, only to "advanced professionals in mid-career." Fellows are free to spend the funds as they see fit, as the purpose is to provide them with "blocks of time in which they can work with as much creative freedom as possible."

In 1925, supported by funds from a bequest from Henry Russel (Law, 1875), the Board of Regents at the University of Michigan established the Henry Russel Award. Considered the University's highest honor for faculty at the early to mid- stages of their career, the Henry Russel Award is conferred annually to University of Michigan faculty members who have demonstrated an extraordinary record of accomplishment in scholarly research and/or creativity, as well as an excellent record of contributions as a teacher.

The Presidential Young Investigator (PYI) Award was presented by the National Science Foundation (NSF) from 1984 to 1991. Considered to be one of the highest honors granted by the NSF, it has since been subsumed into the NSF CAREER Awards program. Applicants had to be nominated by others based on their previous record of scientific achievement. The award included a minimum grant of $25,000 per year for five years from the NSF to be used for any scientific research project the awardee wished to pursue, with the possibility of additional funding up to $100,000 annually if the PYI obtained matching funds from industry. 

Founded in 1780, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences is one of the nation's oldest and most prestigious learned societies, and an independent research center that draws from its members' expertise to conduct studies in science and technology policy, global security, the humanities and culture, social policy, and education. It recognizes some of the world's most accomplished scholars, scientists, writers, artists, and civic, corporate, and philanthropic leaders.

At its Commencement each June, Dartmouth awards honorary degrees to select individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the arts and humanities, the sciences, business and industry or public service in the broadest sense. Degrees awarded include Doctorates of Arts, Humane Letters, Laws, Letters, Literature, and Science. The honorary degree citation for Philip J. Hanlon, along with those of his fellow 2023 honorands, including his wife, Gail Gentes, can be found here.