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.

Want to see more alumni profiles? Check out our Harvard Forest REU alumni blog.

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.

Want to see more alumni profiles? Check out our Harvard Forest REU alumni blog.

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!

Want to see more alumni profiles? Check out our Harvard Forest REU alumni blog.