Ohio University Chapter of American Meteorological Society named Outstanding Student Chapter of the Year

The Ohio University Chapter of the American Meteorological Society (OUCAMS) was recently awarded the “Outstanding Student Chapter of the Year” for the 2018-19 academic year by the American Meteorological Society (AMS). 

“It’s a really big honor,” said chapter advisor and associate professor of meteorology Dr. Ryan Fogt. “We apply each year and there have been several years we get placed on the honor roll, a step below this award. The students do a lot of work and it’s awesome to see them recognized on a national level.”

OUCAMS was recognized during the national 100^th AMS Annual Meeting in Boston, Mass., in January. Several students attended the meeting in person, where they were recognized during the Student Chapter Award Breakfast. 

“What this award means to me is that our chapter is willing to go out and help the Athens community,” said Pete Hein, the student chapter president. “All of the activities we do are strictly volunteer based. This is what makes this so meaningful to me.”

According to AMS, the award is rewarded for “for outstanding commitment to providing educational, mentoring, and networking opportunities to members, and for exemplary community service.”

One way OUCAMS showcases exemplary educational service is by working to renew the National Weather Services’ StormReady status for OHIO’s Athens campus. Students work with a variety of University officials to have emergency weather plans in place and help officials be prepared, from training on weather radios to learning how to secure buildings. 

The National Weather Service checks the plans each year to recertify the campus. The chapter will hold a ceremony in early March to celebrate the recertification.

The chapter has also participated in Adopt-A-Highway for five years now. The students clean a stretch of highway four to five times each year.

“To the chapter, I believe every current and past member is really proud of the work they have put into this award. Many of us were shocked when we first found out we were winning such a high honor in the American Meteorological Society,” Hein said. 

This is the second time OUCAMS has been recognized with this national award. The group previously won the Outstanding Student Chapter of the Year award for the 2014-15 academic year.

“We’ve only been a chapter for 10 years and now we’ve won it twice,” Fogt said. “It’s exciting to see our small campus compete at the national level and succeed.” 

The chapter is open to all majors and weather enthusiasts, with weekly meetings on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. in Ellis Hall room 114.