Dr. Sarah Brooks, an assistant professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at Texas A&M, received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) on November 1, 2007 at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C.

The PECASE is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers beginning their independent careers. Selected for their innovative research which is at the frontier of science and technology, PECASE nominees must show exceptional potential to shape the future through intellectual and inspired leadership. Their educational activities must reflect a spirit of community service and may include efforts to help their colleagues or the public understand the nature and implications of their scientific research. The White House, following recommendations from participating agencies, confers the awards annually.

Dr. Brooks was nominated by the USDA in recognition of her work on assessing the impact of aerosols from agricultural sources on air quality and climate change. Dr. Brooks' work is part of a collaborative effort, including Professor Brooks, Dr. Gunnar Schade, also in Atmospheric Sciences, and Dr. Brent Auvermann from the Texas Agricultural Experimental Station (TAES) in Amarillo. Together they are conducting the field measurements needed to fully characterize the physical and chemical characteristics of aerosols which will lead to accurate assessment of overall air quality on local and regional levels. The work is supported by the National Research Initiative of the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), National Research Initiative on Air Quality, grant #2005-04080.

Dr. Brooks has been a faculty member in the College of Geosciences at Texas A&M since 2005. She received a National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 2006. Dr. Brooks received her B.S. in Chemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1995 and went on to earn her Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Colorado, Boulder, in 2002. She has co-authored thirteen refereed publications. She is a member of the American Geological Union, American Association of Aerosol Research, American Meteorology Society, and the Union of Concerned Scientists. For more information on Dr. Brooks’ research, visit http://www.met.tamu.edu/.