Fellowship Experiences

Although I started graduate school in August 2022, my unofficial journey to graduate school began about a year before, with an email. At the time, I was working as a wetland research technician at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) in Edgewater, Maryland. I had a year left of my full-time, but temporary, contract.

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Phragmites australis is a non-native grass that has become a dominant wetland plant in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay region in just a few decades. It is pervasive in wetlands across the United States. Phragmites is a powerful ecosystem engineer that absorbs contamination and stores carbon, but it is also a major threat to native plants.

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I was excited for the new opportunities my State Science Policy Fellowship would bring, but nothing could have prepared me for the email I received from the White House in November.

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Flood and stormwater resilience will make our communities safer and more adaptable to environmental change. Fellow Aubrey Tingler is working with the Maryland Department of the Environment on creative, efficient methods to collect data on local flood and stormwater management practices, regulations, and community needs.  Read more...

One of the most exciting parts of 2022 was learning I would be following my dreams of getting a master’s degree. It was another quiet day of studying for finals down in my apartment when I finally got the email. The email was a great studying break, and I sighed in relief.

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