Rachel Carson Scholars Program Alumni

About the Program

The Rachel Carson Scholars Program provides ��Ĵ�ý undergraduate students with direct research experience in marine science and conservation. Named in honor of Rachel Carson—a marine biologist, author, and conservationist whose work advanced the global environmental movement—scholars will acquire the necessary skills to be the next generation of marine conservation leaders.

Scholars are trained through small seminar experiences, experiential learning, enhanced faculty-student mentorship, scientific research, and professional development. All scholars spend at least one semester at the ��Ĵ�ý Marine Laboratory (DUML) and have funding available for research, travel to professional conferences, and Marine Lab travel courses. In addition to the training that they receive, a community of scholars will be developed within each cohort of scholars, among alumni of the program, and with the scholars in the two parallel Marine Lab Scholars programs, the Repass-Rodgers Scholars and the Scholars in Marine Medicine.

Program Alumni

Class of 2026

	Jacob Frietze Major: Biology; Evolutionary Anthropology Cohort: 2024 Advisor: Dr. Meagan Dunphy-Daly Contact: jacob.frietze@duke.edu
	Samantha George Major: Environmental Sciences & Policy; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Juliet Wong Project: Investigating the dual impacts of the parasitic boring sponge, Cliona celata, and acute thermal stress on eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica
	Lizzy Glazer Major: Neuroscience; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Drs. Andy Read and Meagan Dunphy-Daly Contact: elizabeth.glazer@duke.edu
	Ruth Havener Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Juliet Wong Contact: ruth.havener@duke.edu
	Ariane Lemaire Major: Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2023 Contact: ariane.lemaire@duke.edu
	Kira Lichtenfeld Major: Environmental Science & Policy; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Contact: kira.lichtenfeld@duke.edu
	Tessa Nyhan Major: Biology Cohort: 2024 Advisor: Dr. Juliet Wong Contact: tessa.nyhan@duke.edu
	Maya Reilly Major: Biology, Evolutionary Anthropology Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Brian Hare Contact: maya.reilly@duke.edu
	Dhruv Rungta Major: Program II (Economics, Ecology and Sustainable Development) Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Contact: dhruv.rungta@duke.edu
	Thomas Tan Major: Marine Science & Conservation; Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Contact: tianrui.tan@duke.edu

Class of 2025

	Maya Brookens Major: Biology Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Juliet Wong Project: Sea urchin (Lytechinus variegatus) population at the northern range edge is fatally vulnerable to 1°C above the current peak temperature
	Logan Evans Major: Environmental Sciences & Policy; Earth & Climate Sciences Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: A secondary foundation species, the ribbed mussel (Geukensia demissa), impacts facilitation and predation in a southeastern salt marsh community
	Cat Gamard Major: Biology Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Investigating new methodology for diagnosing brucellosis in stranded cetaceans in the western North Atlantic
	Molly Honecker Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Investigating population structure and local adaptation of eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) across geographic scales in North Carolina
	Erika Kraabel Major: Biology; Evolutionary Anthropology Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: A comparative study of baleen whale body morphometrics from UAS imagery and historical whaling data
	Ava Leaphart Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Mitochondrial sequence data reveal genetic distinctions among T. truncatus, T. erebennus, and a novel dolphin population
	Sara Norton Major: Biology; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Juliet Wong Project: Investigating the effectiveness and water quality impacts of eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) restoration in Pamlico Sound
	Porter Major: Environmental Science & Policy; International Comparative Studies Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Lisa Campbell Project: In the wake of disaster: The Federal Emergency Management Agency and environmental justice in natural disaster recovery
	Sasha Provost Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Analysis of stakeholder perspectives regarding potential floating offshore wind project implementation in North Carolina
	Emma Sardy Major: Biology Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read and Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Using environmental DNA to detect cetaceans
	Aaron Siegle Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Tibor Vegh Project: Combatting the coastal squeeze: A new planning paradigm to conserve disappearing marshes
	Ari Solomon Major: Marine Sciences & Conservation Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Chatty cheetahs? Analysis of foraging behavior of short-finned pilot whales
	Henry Sun Major: Biology; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: Generative diffusion models for dataset augmentation and cetacean detection
	Luca Tjossem Major: Economics; Biology Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. John Virdin Project: From fishing to tourism: Socio-economic and environmental impacts on coastal communities in the Global South
	Hall Welborn Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Grant Murray Project: Living shorelines: Marine contractors’ perspectives, motivations, and influences

Class of 2024

	Zoe Ali Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: Advancing procedural equity in marine protected area management
	Chloe Beittel Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2023 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Exploratory breath analysis using acoustic signal processing of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in Barataria Bay, Louisiana
	Erika Berlik Major: Marine Science & Conservation; Biology Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Coexisting foundation species shape reef fish community and trophic structure at an ecotone
	Nhu Bui Major: English; Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Silliman Project: All hands on deck: The effects of biological partnerships on turtlegrass (Thalassia testudinum) restoration success
	Christian Campbell Major: Earth & Climate Sciences Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Population genetic structure of three distinct bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) populations off North Carolina’s coast
	Ariel Chukwuma Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Grant Murray Project: Fish fries & fishing for food: Cultural traditions among African Americans on the southeastern coast of North Carolina
	Danny Collins Major: Marine Science & Conservation; Biology Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Jason Somarelli and Dr. Tom Schultz Project: CRISPR-based biosensors for the rapid detection of ocean life: From diatoms to dolphins
	Misaki Foster Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Cindy Van Dover Project: The distribution of echinoderms at North Atlantic seamounts
	Catalina Lopez Major: Marine Science & Conservation; Biology Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Nishad Jayasundara Project: Temporal variation in standard metabolic rate of juvenile Atlantic killifish
	Ali Pagliery Major: Biology Cohort: 2022 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Reducing the severity of whale entanglements: The potential of absorbable sutures in fishing ropes
	Olivia Polemeni Major: Biology; Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Reef distribution and niche partitioning of deep-sea coral ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico
	Tanok Ramirez Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Daniel Rittschof Project: Snails & smells: Littoraria irrorata are more likely to ingest polystyrene leachate when combined with positively associated environmental scents
	Abby Saks Major: Biology; Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Dan Richter
	Jilly Senk Major: Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz Project: Quantification and characterization of microplastic particles within the sediment of Duke Marine Lab’s oyster aquafarm
	Marley Dooling Major: Biology; Environmental Sciences & Policy Graduation Year: 2024

Class of 2023

	Arianna Agostini Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Mutualist vs competitor: Exploring the context dependency of seagrass–bivalve interactions across a stress gradient
	Elizabeth Bock Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Andrew Read Project: Effects of sociability on the reproductive success of wild bottlenose dolphins following a marine heatwave
	Brendan Cantwell Major: Earth & Ocean Sciences Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Meagan Dunphy-Daly
	Grace Chung Major: Biology, Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. S. N. Patek Project: Temperature effects on cavitation bubble dynamics of Alpheus heterochaelis
	Madison Griffin Major: Biology Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Meagan Dunphy-Daly
	Grace Jennings Majors: Environmental Science & Policy, Sociology Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: Life of storms: Analyzing the social impacts of hurricanes in the U.S. Virgin Islands through the scientific literature
	Nick Kaney Major: Biology Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Doug Nowacek and Dr. Rob Schick Project: Behavioral impacts of extended viewership on Florida manatees (T. m. latirostris) by ecotourist watercraft
	Lauren Miller Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Group membership and location influence estimates of behavioral aerobic dive limits in short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus)
	Madena Mustafa Major: Environmental Science and Policy Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: The effects of climate change on coral-dependent communities: A review of the scientific literature and interview responses from the Caribbean
	Magdalena Phillips Major: Biology Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Sönke Johnsenu Project: Collective navigation of talitrid amphipods
	Lydia Sellers Major: Environmental Science and Policy Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Meagan Dunphy-Daly Project: A case study for using co-creation and authentic community engagement to improve a documentary on an environmental issue
	Emma Shuppert Major: Marine Science & Conservation Cohort: 2021 Advisor: Dr. Andrew Read Project: Quantifying microplastic concentration in Sargassum patches: Call for new methodology to understand plastic exposure to juvenile sea turtles

Class of 2022

	Dana Adcock Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: A juvenile humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) produces song fragments on a winter feeding ground
	Catherine Brenner Major: Biology, Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Relative effects of nutrient availability and mutualist density on plant growth, animal community structure, and sediment accretion in a southern U.S. salt marsh
	Erin Gleason Cohort: 2018
	India Haber Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Doug Nowacek Project: Assessing the role of eavesdropping behavior in intraspecific competition among bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)
	Sophie Hanson Major: Biology Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Connecting populations across ocean basins: Genomics of short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) in the western North Atlantic
	Anna He Major: Biology, Earth & Ocean Sciences Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Small-scale fragmentation increases surface temperature of oyster habitats
	Max Hofstetter Major: Biology Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: Floating oyster aquaculture as fish aggregation devices: Case study at the ��Ĵ�ý Aquafarm
	Zach Horowitz Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Thomas Schultz Project: Quantification of microplastic accumulation patterns within the ��Ĵ�ý Marine Laboratory oyster farm
	David Hugo Major: Environmental Sciences; Biology Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: The dangers of going with the flow: Using autonomous transmitters to document downstream passage conditions and risk of fish injury at dams
	Kellie Johnson Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2020 Advisor: Dr. Cindy Van Dover Project: Faunal associations and ecotone analysis of a Blake Ridge cold seep
	Chandler Katz Major: Economics Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Martin Smith Project: Economics of aquaculture
	Kenneth Lau Majors: Environmental Science & Policy, Philosophy Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Dave Johnston Project: Assessing recreational fishing effort with satellite imagery
	Maddie Paris Major: Biology, Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Understanding variance in marsh predator disturbance patterns in Pacific estuaries
	Jwalin Patel Major: Economics; Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Jeffery Vincent Project: Impact of a local input and non-timber benefits on rates of return to forest restoration in India and China
	Ryan Rogers Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Consumer regulation of a parasite-host interaction: Density-dependent control of oyster parasites by generalist consumers
	Avery Taylor Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Cindy Van Dover Project: Community structure and biodiversity of a Blake Ridge chemosynthetic seep
	Megan Wang Major: Economics Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Xavier Basurto

Class of 2021

	Danielle Brown Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Rebecca Vidra Project: Disparities in potable water access in Puerto Rico post-Hurricane María: A water management case study
	Kendall Jefferys Major: Environmental Science & Policy; English Cohort: 20 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: The role of governance and social context in shaping MPA food security impacts
	Marley Kaplan Major: Biology; Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: Understanding change in economic well-being within marine protected area coastal communities: The case study of the Bird’s Head seascape in West Papua, Indonesia
	Katie Knotek Major: Environmental Sciences; Biology Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read and Danielle Waples Project: Movement patterns of short-finned pilot whales: A comparison of photo-identification catalogues from Cape Hatteras and the Bahamas and implications for species management and protection
	Sarah Kwartler Major: Biology Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Jason Somarelli Project: Investigating invertebrate and enzymatic bioremediation of plastic waste
	Melissa Marchese Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Emily Bernhardt Project: Mercury accumulation in foodstuffs from artisanal goldmining areas of Madre de Dios, Peru, and estimated human exposure
	Cliff Sheehan Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Dave Johnston Project: Detecting, counting, and classifying pinnipeds in drone imagery using a convolutional neural network
	Cassie Shriver Major: Mechanical Engineering Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: Material preferences in Diopatra cuprea tube construction
	Chris Teufel Major: Biology, Computer Science Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Tom Schultz
	Jessica Wang Major: Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Reproductive patterns of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the Potomac River–Chesapeake Bay
	Jessica Zhao Major: Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2019 Advisor: Dr. David Gill Project: Inclusivity and integration of marine protected areas in Eastern Indonesia

Class of 2020

	Molly Albright Major: Biology Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Andy Read Project: Looking skin deep: Assessing skin lesion presence in short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus)
	Melissa Baldino Major: Biology, Environmental Science Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: Estimating the carbon offsetting potential of shellfish aquaculture
	Alexandra DiGiacomo Major: Biology Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: Coastal shark abundance and spatial dynamics respond to small-scale environmental fluctuations of the Rachel Carson Reserve estuary in Beaufort, North Carolina
	Maddie Go Major: Biology Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: Responses of mud snails to plastic leachates
	Andrea Kolarova Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Stuart Pimm Project: Sooty tern (Onychoprion fuscatus) stress and survivorship in the Dry Tortugas
	Virginia Pan Majors: Electrical & Computer Engineering Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Doug Nowacek Project: Detecting and classifying short-finned pilot whale acoustics with deep learning
	Nicholas Peoples Majors: Environmental Science Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Stuart Pimm Project: Morphological diversity of Lake Victoria haplochromine cichlids: Understanding drivers of diversification using a geometric morphometric approach
	Katie Ridgway Major: Political Science Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Megan Mullin Project: Local responses to offshore exploration and development along the Atlantic
	Emma Schmaltz Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2017 Advisors: Drs. Jason Somarelli and Meagan Dunphy-Daly Project: Can marine mammals point the way to understanding responses to environmental hypoxia?
	D'amy Steward Major: Biology, Environmental Science Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Silliman Project: Quantifying spatial distributions and benthic footprints of artificial reefs on the southeastern U.S.A. continental shelf
	Well Witoonchart Major: Biology Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof Project: Identifying what makes plastic taste appealing to corals
	Junette Yu Major: Neuroscience, Linguistics Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Dan Rittschof

Class of 2019

	Rachel Cohn Major: Biology, Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2017 Advisors: Drs. Brian Silliman and Douglas Nowacek Project: Acoustic disturbance of snapping shrimp (Alpheus heterochaelis) densities to boat noise
	Annie Harshbarger Major: Environmental Sciences, Biology Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: The use of drones to study the feral horses of eastern North Carolina
	Briana Kleiner Major: Environmental Sciences & Policy Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Xavier Basurto Project: Communities and conservation: Examining the traditional ecological knowledge within sea turtle conservation in the Gulf of California
	Levi Rhoades Major: Environmental Science Cohort: 2018 Advisor: Dr. Zackary Johnson Project: Algae growth rates and yield analysis with light and temperature condition variance
	Trevyn Toone Majors: Biology, Earth & Ocean Sciences Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Cindy Van Dover Project: Trophic relationships at deep-sea Barbados seeps

Class of 2018

	Clara Bird Major: Biology, Environmental Sciences Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: A new method for using surface texture to predict potential Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) habitat off the western Antarctic Peninsula using 3D structure-from-motion data collected with UAV
	Ashley Blawas Major: Biomedical Engineering Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Douglas Nowacek Project: Identifying patterns in flow-volume curves for use as a diagnostic tool for respiratory health of bottlenose dolphins
	Carmen Hoyt Major: Biology, Earth & Ocean Sciences Cohort: 2017 Advisors: Dr. Meagan Dunphy-Daly Project: A shortage of sharks: Quantifying biodiversity changes in a community of sharks in Onslow Bay, N.C.
	Sam Kelly Major: Mechanical Engineering Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. David Johnston Project: Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) ecological barcode scanning, megafauna motion tag
	Stephanie Prufer Major: Biology, Environmental Science & Policy Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Positive interactions enhance salt marsh restoration in regions of high abiotic stress
	Hannah Robinson Major: Biology Cohort: 2017 Advisor: Dr. Brian Silliman Project: Preliminary assessment of river otter (Lontra canadensis) utilizing marine habitats in coastal North Carolina