What are you up to now?

Megan Woltz

REU '06

Mentors: Kristina Stinson, Kathleen Donohue

Project: Garlic mustard population demographics differ among forest habitats at the Harvard Forest LTER (abstract)

Hometown: Afton, NC

College and major: North Carolina State University, Environmental Sciences, Ecology Concentration, Class of '07

What you miss most about the REU program:
Sitting around Fisher House cracking jokes with other REUs and Tim's excellent cooking.

What you miss least about the REU program:

Poison ivy and mosquitoes that bite through carharts!

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
.The conviction that I really love to do research and want to some day run my own lab.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?:
Yes, my old HF roommate is now one of my best friends. We visit each other once or twice a year, even though we live hundreds of miles apart, and talk on the phone pretty regularly.

Whether your REU experience supported or changed your career plans:
Supported - the experience reinforced my desire to pursue scientific research as a career.

What you're up to now:
I'm in my 3rd year in a PhD program in Entomology at Michigan State University.

What are you up to now?

Maggie Wagner

REU '09

Mentors: Dave Orwig, Audrey Barker-Plotkin

Project: Mortality, coarse woody debris, and nutrient cycling over 20 years in a virgin Tsuga canadensis forest in New Hampshire (abstract)

Hometown: Troy, MI

College and major: University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Plant Biology, class of '09

What you miss most about the REU program:
The location-- I loved being in the forest with tons of opportunities for outdoor recreation. I also liked living with my friends and fellow students at Fisher House.

What you miss least about the REU program:

The fruit flies in Fisher House.

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
It was my first real taste of a professional research atmosphere. I feel much more prepared for grad school now, I know more about what to expect. I learned a lot this summer and met a lot of great people.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?:
Yes, several of them.

Whether your REU experience supported or changed your career plans:
My REU experience reinforced my plans to go into academic research.

What you're up to now:
I'm writing my honors thesis right now, to graduate in December. I am also applying to grad schools, which I hope to enter in Fall 2010. My research focus is on plant evolutionary genetics and ecology, especially in range boundaries and hybrid zones. I will probably get my MS before pursuing a PhD.

What are you up to now?

 

Jhessye Moore-Thomas
REU '08

Mentor: Audrey Barker-Plotkin

Project: Investigating Water Table Levels Affected by Topography and Clearcut Forest Harvest (abstract)

Hometown: Tampa, FL

College and major: University of Central Florida, Environmental Studies and Film, class of '09

What you miss most about the REU program:
I miss the mentors! They were so awesome!

What you miss least about the REU program:

The ticks and the deerflies!

What about the REU program has stuck with you:
The amount of hard work and the beauty of presenting what you have done and learned to other people.

Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?:
Yes I have, on a facebook basis and sometimes by phone.

Whether your REU experience supported or changed your career plans:
Supported, yes!!!!

What you're up to now:
I am applying to Americorps... and I am committed to an eco-journey for the rest of my life!