Awards
Summary of the awards we give each year
| Tiller Award | Members who have demonstrated excellence in law enforcement photography |
| Edward Foster Award | Points out the contribution of the recipient to Forensic Identification field throughout his/her career. |
| William Donald Dixon Research Grant |
For individuals engaged in forensic research. |
| Essay / Scholarship Award | On forensic identification evidence that describes a successful method of locating, processing or presenting such evidence. |
| Michael J. Cassidy Award | This award is intended to encourage professionalism and innovation in footwear evidence recovery and identification, by recognizing excellence in footwear comparison |
| Jack Milligan achievement Award | Members that have been recognized by their peers for their outstanding achievements in the field of fingerprints. |
| C.I.S. Fellowship Criterion |
Awarded Fellowship status to C.I.S. members who are recognized as having made a significant contribution to the field of forensic identification and/ or the Canadian Identification Society. |
THE TILLER AWARD
Christopher O. Tiller, one of the founding members of the Canadian Identification Society, created the Tiller Award for Canadian Identification Society (C.I.S.) members who have demonstrated excellence in law enforcement photography. This award is offered on an annual basis. Only members in good standing with the C.I.S. are eligible to apply.
Submissions should comply with the following criteria:
- Black & White, or Colour 8" x 10" photographs taken by the applicant.
- Photograph should be of a case exhibit, submitted after court action has been concluded or where no court action is contemplated.
- The photographs should be mounted.
The following information should appear on the reverse side of the mount:
- Exposure detail
- Processing detail (if known)
- Brief description of exhibit including an explanation of its involvement in the case (names should be omitted).
- Note: No identifying data should appear on the exhibit.
Submissions will be judged based on the following criteria:
- Photographic quality (50%)
- Evidential value (40%)
- Ingenuity/utilization of techniques and equipment (10%)
- Judge decision is final.
Apply for Tiller Award
Recipients:
| Archie G.A. Purgavie | Brian Ward | Angus Noseworthy |
| Kenneth Lugg | David Zauner | Carey Smith |
| David Banks | Wayne Harnum | David E. Black |
| Gary Leydier |
Al Misner |
David J. Hamer |
| Alexander D. McMurrich | Douglas Handy | Ronald M. Gilbert |
| Leonard B. Shaw | Robert B. Kennedy | Joseph Slemko |
| W. Derrick Swiderski | William B. Benjamin | Suki Thind |
| Michael Reid | Sharon Smith | John D. Stewart |
| Alexandre Beaudoin | Bruce Hamblim |
THE EDWARD FOSTER AWARD
This award is named after Edward Foster, the founder of the fingerprint system in Canada, and is intended to encourage C.I.S. members to conduct research that shall benefit the Forensic Identification profession. This award points out the contribution of the recipient to Forensic Identification field throughout his/her career.
Submissions should comply with the following criteria:
- Two C.I.S. members are required to nominate an individual they feel qualifies.
- An outline of the nominated individual's contribution to Forensic Identification is to be included with the nomination.
Apply for The Edward Foster Award
Recipients:
| Brian E. Dalrymple | Harold G. Tuthill | Robert A. McPherson |
| Jack Milligan | Maurice E. Wolff | Paul Morin |
| David Ashbaugh | Robert B. Kennedy | Pat Laturnus |
| Maurice Nadeau |
THE WILLIAM DONALD DIXON RESEARCH GRANT
William Donald Dixon, one of the founding members of the Canadian Identification Society, created two research awards, each in the amount of $500.00 (Canadian), for individuals engaged in forensic research.
Applicants should comply with one of the following criteria:
- Be any member of the C.I.S. who submits a relevant research paper in the field of Forensic Science.
- Have a Bachelor's Degree in any discipline; however, priority may be given to graduates in science or chemistry.
- The applicant need not be employed in law enforcement but letters of recommendation should be obtained from senior law enforcement official(s), the applicant's academic head and employer.
- Be a graduate of a three (3) year college program, however, priority may be given to applicants who have graduated from a science or chemistry related program. The applicant must be employed in law enforcement and letters of recommendation should be obtained from the applicant's section head and a senior official of their police department.
- Be an undergraduate or part-time student of a university or college program, however, priority may be given to applicants who have earned credits in a science or chemistry program. The applicant must be employed in law enforcement and letters of recommendation must be obtained from the applicant's section head and a senior official of their police department.
Submissions should comply with the following criteria:
- The applicants must submit a research proposal/outline on a topic related to forensic identification.
- The applicant must identify an objective where the benefit to law enforcement can be measured.
- The summary and/or research paper must be submitted for publishing in the Identification Canada Journal.
Apply for The William Donald Dixon Research Grant
Recipients:
| John Badowski (1989) | Byron Ferguson (1990) | David Ashbaugh (1991) |
| Ron Yeomans (1994) | Tara Nicholls (2000) | Zain Bhaloo (2009) |
ESSAY/ SCHOLARSHIP AWARD
Three Essay/ Scholarship Awards, in the amount of $300.00, $200.00 and $100.00 (Canadian), are available for C.I.S. members or members of their immediate family.
Applicants should comply with one of the following criteria:
- Applicants must be a CIS member employed in law enforcement or a relative in immediate family of such a member.
- The applicant should submit an essay (minimum of 3000 words in either French or English) on forensic identification evidence that describes a successful method of locating, processing or presenting such evidence.
The judging procedure is as follows:
- The essays will be evaluated on the originality of the technique, on the merit as a method of collecting/ processing forensic evidence and on the quality of writing.
- Essays will remain the property of the Canadian Identification Society.
Candidate could write more than one article.
Apply for Essay/Scholarship Award
THE MICHAEL J. CASSIDY AWARD
Michael J. Cassidy made significant contributions to footwear comparison and identification. This award is intended to encourage professionalism and innovation in footwear evidence recovery and identification, by recognizing excellence in footwear comparison. Only members in good standing with the C.I.S. are eligible to apply.
Submissions should comply with the following criteria:
- Include photographs and/or charts of a footwear comparison.
- Include a short narrative describing the details of the case, the methods used to recover the footwear, the conclusion of the comparison and the impact of the comparison on the case.
- The applicant's contact information should be on a separate paper.
- The winner agrees to publish the footwear case in Identification Canada.
- Submissions will be accepted only after all court action has been concluded or where no court action is contemplated.
The judging procedure and criteria for the award will include:
- Uniqueness and innovation in the techniques used to recover the evidence.
- Additional research done to assist in reaching a conclusion.
- Impact that the evidence had on the outcome of the case.
Apply for The Micheal J. Cassidy Award
Recipients:
| Wayne Harnum | Don Hulsman | Rob Gervais |
THE JACK MILLIGAN ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Jack Milligan is one of the founding members of the Canadian Identification Society. Three awards, in the amount of $500.00, $300.00 and $200.00 (Canadian), are available for C.I.S. members that have been recognized by their peers for their outstanding achievements in the field of fingerprints. The award can be cash, a voucher, or can be put toward a sponsorship to attend a future Annual Educational C.I.S. Conference.
Applicants should comply with the following criteria:
- Employed within the field of Forensic Services, Research and/or Investigation.
- Submit an original paper describing an individual or group achievement in the field of fingerprints.
- The winner(s) agrees to publish the article in Identification Canada.
Apply for The Jack Milligan Achievement Award
Recipients:
| RCMP – Ottawa Latent Fingerprint Bureau Bradley J. Butler |
C.I.S. FELLOWSHIP CRITERION
(Currently under review.)
The C.I.S. will award Fellowship status to C.I.S. members who are recognized as having made a significant contribution to the field of forensic identification and/ or the Canadian Identification Society.
Applicants should comply with one of the following criteria:
- Must be a member of the C.I.S. for a minimum of twelve months.
- Submit a research paper or technical article to the Fellowship Board. Submitted work must be of publication quality but need not have been published.
- Papers submitted must be in the form prescribed by the Fellowship Board.
The judging procedure is as follows:
- The Fellowship Board will be the final judge as to the adequacy of submissions.
- Where the Fellowship Board is not qualified to rule on the work submitted, person(s) qualified in the discipline most aptly suited to the research conducted shall be asked for their opinion on the validity and application of the work and shall submit an acceptance/non-acceptance recommendation to the Fellowship Board.
- Names of successful candidates will be forwarded to the C.I.S. Board of Directors for approval and the Editor of Identification Canada for publication.
- Successful candidates will retain their status as a Fellow as long as they retain continuous membership in the C.I.S.
- Where circumstances warrant, the Fellowship Board, with the concurrence of the C.I.S. Board of Directors, may confer Fellowship on a member who, in the opinion of the Fellowship Board, is a highly respected and qualified member of the identification profession and has made a valuable contribution to the profession, without requiring the member to meet the qualifications otherwise defined.
Our Award Procedure
In accordance with the Canadian Identification Society By-Law #1, the C.I.S. Awards Committee is responsible for making award recommendations to the C.I.S. Board of Directors. The Awards Committee must receive all nomination material thirty (30) days prior to the beginning of the C.I.S. annual educational conference in order for the submission(s) to be considered at the conference.
- Submissions should be mailed to the CIS 2nd Vice-President. Please allow sufficient mailing time for submissions. Submissions may also be made electronically, if appropriate.
- Any questions, comments or concerns should be directed to the CIS 2nd Vice-President.