GIA Honors Susan Jacques
CARLSBAD, Calif. – November 10, 2025 – During the GIA Board of Governors meeting in early November at the Institute’s headquarters in Carlsbad, California, the Institute honored Susan M. Jacques with its highest honor, the Richard T. Liddicoat Award for Distinguished Achievement.
Chair of the GIA Board of Governors Lisa Locklear, and GIA President and CEO Pritesh Patel presented the Richard T. Liddicoat Award to Jacques, who stepped down as GIA’s sixth president and CEO in August and will retire at the end of the year.
Richard T. Liddicoat Award Presentation
(left-to-right) GIA Analytical Microscopist John Koivula
Kathryn Kimmel, GIA’s first chief marketing officer (retired)
GIA’s sixth president and CEO Susan Jacques
GIA Executive Vice President and Chief Laboratory and Research Officer Tom Moses
Alice Keller, long-time editor of Gems & Gemology (retired)
and GIA Distinguished Research Fellow Dr. James E. Shigley.
“It is with great pride and admiration that we present the Richard T. Liddicoat Award for Distinguished Achievement to Susan Jacques,” said Lisa Locklear. She continued, “A leader throughout her remarkable career, Susan has been the heart and soul of GIA.”
GIA President and CEO Pritesh Patel added, “Susan’s vision, integrity, compassion, and unwavering dedication influenced GIA, the gem and jewelry industry, and everyone she has shared her time with. That positivity will resonate for years to come.”
Since its establishment in 1994, the Richard T. Liddicoat Award for Distinguished Achievement has been awarded to just 14 individuals. Three of those continue to contribute their expertise to GIA – analytical microscopist John Koivula; Tom Moses, the executive vice president and chief laboratory and research officer; and Dr. James E. Shigley, GIA’s only distinguished research fellow.
The Award’s Namesake: Richard T. Liddicoat
Richard Thomas Liddicoat Jr. (1918–2002) joined GIA in June of 1940 as assistant director of education, rose quickly through education to head the Institute by 1952 as president, and ultimately Chairman of the GIA Board of Governors.
Architect of the 4CS
It was in 1953 that Liddicoat and his colleagues at GIA introduced a practical system for grading diamonds using the 4Cs: Color, Clarity, Cut, and Carat weight. Today, he is widely acclaimed as the architect of the GIA International Diamond Grading System™, now the world standard for diamond grading.
The GIA diamond grading report was first issued in 1955 in New York. GIA now grades millions of diamonds annually in several locations worldwide.
The Father of Modern Gemology
For most of Liddicoat’s career, he built a strong gemological research ethic at GIA by sharing information worldwide through books, Gems & Gemology magazine, and GIA’s education programs. His Handbook of Gem Identification, first published in 1947, has been through numerous editions, and remains one of the most respected textbooks in gemology.
Richard T. Liddicoat received numerous tributes throughout his career—including the naming of a tourmaline variety in his honor—but above all, he is recognized as the “Father of Modern Gemology.”
A personal note:
I had just graduated from the Graduate Gemology program when I was hired by “Mr. L” to work in the GIA Gem Trade Lab in Santa Monica, California.
One vivid memory of his gemological strength came when I was still a rookie diamond grader. It was 1977, and lab director Charles “Chuck” Fryer (1928-2003) was examining an opal with unusual circular growth patterns. It was Mr. Liddicoat’s coffee break, and he always came into the lab to see what had been submitted. Chuck called him over to the scope to see if he had ever seen anything like this opal. After a fairly quick look, Liddicoat stood up and said, “I think Bob — G. Robert Crowningshield (1919–2006), GIA’s vice president and co-director of the New York Gem Trade Lab — wrote about this in the Fall 1967 issue of G&G,” then walked straight over to the bookcase, pulled out the Fall 1967 issue, and said, “Yes, here it is… Oolitic Opal.”
That memorable little moment crystallized for me why he was so highly regarded at the Institute—it was his dedication to gemology, his character, and his effortless generosity in sharing his knowledge.
And it is precisely for those qualities that the Richard T. Liddicoat Award for Distinguished Achievement has been awarded to the deserving and respected recipients noted above.
