This award was established in 2012 by Jean Robinson Peters to honor the memory of her father, Sid Robinson, an Olympic track star who became an internationally famous exercise and environmental physiologist. The scholarship was first awarded in 2016.
Sid Robinson Biology Scholarship
About Sid Robinson
Sid Robinson (1902-1982) was a middle distance runner who represented the U.S. in the 1928 Olympics. He went on to become an internationally famous exercise and environmental physiologist.
Dr. Robinson earned an M.S. from Cornell University in 1929 and taught at the University of Kentucky for one year. He joined the IU faculty in 1930, serving as an Assistant Professor of Physical and Health Education; Head Cross Country Coach; and Assistant Track Coach. Under his tutelage, the IU cross country team won the Big Ten Championship five times in a row and the National AAU Championship three times.
In 1936, Dr. Robinson went to Harvard University to complete his graduate studies at the newly established Harvard Fatigue Laboratory, under the tutelage of David Bruce Dill, who headed that unit. Dr. Robinson received his Ph.D. in Physiology from Harvard in 1938. The following year, he was appointed Assistant Professor of Physiology here at IU, eventually becoming Chair of the Department of Anatomy and Physiology. He pursued research in human stress physiology throughout his career. After Dr. Dill retired, he joined IU, working with Dr. Robinson to duplicate research done on athletes they had previously studied in order to determine changes brought about by aging.