The Larry Sandler Award was established in 1988 by the colleagues, friends, and students of Dr. Larry Sandler after his untimely death in 1987. The award serves to honor Dr. Sandler for his many contributions to Drosophila genetics and his exceptional dedication to the training of Drosophila biologists.
Nominations will open August 3.
Eligibility
Any student completing a PhD in an area of Drosophila research between July 2025 and December 2026 is eligible. Students may be nominated by their thesis advisor, department chair, or supervisory committee member.
Nomination Process
All nominations must include:
- Thesis Abstract
The thesis abstract, written by the student, should be 1 to 2 pages and must omit journal names and institution names. Nominees will be evaluated on abstract attributes including identifying an important scientific problem, their approach to tackling the scientific problem, and the anticipated impact to the community. - Nominee’s CV
Nominees will be evaluated on CV attributes including completed research works (e.g., research publications and preprints), other forms of scholarly contributions (e.g., editorials, commentary, reviews), and contributions to the scientific community and/or outreach activities. - Nomination Letter
Nominees will be evaluated on nomination letter attributes including the nominee’s role in developing and testing hypotheses, in doing or organizing the work, their contributions to the lab environment, and their scientific growth. A nomination letter should directly answer the following questions:- What are the main discoveries in the nominee’s thesis?
- What are the intellectual and experimental contributions of the nominee to the project?
- How does the thesis work advance what was previously known in the field and previous work from your lab?
Past Recipients
| Rebecca Tarnpol, 2026 | Daniel Ortiz-Barrientos, 2006 |
| Peiwei Chen, 2025 | Elissa Hallem, 2005 |
| Sherzod Tokamov, 2024 | Sean McGuire, 2004 |
| James O’Connor, 2023 | Sinisa Urban, 2003 |
| Lianna Wat, 2022 | Matthew C. Gibson, 2002 |
| Ching-Ho Chang, 2021 | James Wilhelm, 2001 |
| Balint Kacsoh, 2020 | Bin Chen, 2000 |
| Laura Fairbanks Seeholzer, 2019 | Terence Murphy, 1999 |
| Lucy Liu, 2018 | Nir Hacohen, 1998 |
| Danny E. Miller, 2017 | Abby Dernburg, 1997 |
| Alejandra Figueroa-Clarevega, 2016 | Chaoyong Ma, 1996 |
| Zhao Zhang, 2015 | David Begun, 1995 |
| Ruei-Jiun Hung, 2014 | Kendal Broadie, 1994 |
| Weizhe Hong, 2013 | David Schneider, 1993 |
| Stephanie Turner Chen, 2012 | Doug Kellogg, 1992 |
| Daniel Babcock, 2011 | Maurice Kernan, 1991 |
| Leonardo Koerich, 2010 | Michael Dickinson, 1990 |
| Timothy T. Weil, 2009 | Kate Harding, 1989 |
| Adam A. L. Friedman, 2008 | Bruce Edgar, 1988 |
| Yu-Chiun Wang, 2007 |