 She received the 2004 National Organization for Women Woman of Courage Award for carrying out and disseminating the results of the Nelson Diversity Surveys.Nelson's diversity research has been cited by dozens of newspapers, magazines, and journals, including "Nature", "The New York Times", "The Christian Science Monitor", and CNN.The Government Accountability Office used Nelson's data for its July 2004 report to Congress on Title IX, specifically women's access to opportunities in the sciences.