R. Creighton Buck Prize Fund

The R. Creighton Buck Prize Fund award is a one-time prize for undergraduate students majoring in mathematics who complete (or are in progress to complete) the “strongest” senior research project and who are graduating in the spring term the award is offered or in the summer or fall term immediately following. Multiple awards may be granted in any one year. If multiple students apply from the same research project group and submit the same research project, any awards will be split evenly among research project group members who have applied.

The R. Creighton Buck Fund was established with a Memorandum of Agreement and gift of $5,000 from Ellen F. Buck in November 1996 to honor her husband, R. Creighton Buck. Neither Ellen nor R. Creighton Buck is a University of Wisconsin graduate. The Fund supports the Department of Mathematics. The purpose of the fund is to reward undergraduates who demonstrate outstanding creativity in mathematics by awarding a prize.

Applicant Eligibility
Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria to be considered for the award:

• Declared in the math major.
• Senior academic standing.
• Plan to graduate in Spring 2024, Summer 2024, or Fall 2024.

Application Materials
Applicants will be expected to submit the following materials for this application:

• Submission of a completed or in-progress research project, as well as a short abstract. If multiple students are completing/have completed a research project and are looking to apply for this award, they will need to submit individual applications.
• Letter of recommendation from research project supervisor (requested during application process through WiSH).

Award Term
This award accepts applications in the spring term with decisions being made before the end of the term. If an applicant clearly indicates that they intend to graduate in the spring term for which they are applying, the award can be applied to the spring term. If applicants are not planning to graduate in the spring term, then awards will be applied to the summer or fall term (applicants may choose).

Questions
Questions regarding this application can be referred to the Department of Mathematics Scholarships and Prizes Committee co-chair, Leigh Keller-Chicoine (kellerchicoi@wisc.edu).