Clare Salerno

I'm currently living in Washington DC and working as a research assistant at a think tank/research organization called the Urban Institute in the Metropolitan Housing and Communities policy center. It's pretty cool that I get to work on a lot of research similar to the LAKES project--mixed methods and community-based--but with more of a housing focus. About half of my projects are evaluations of federal housing programs, and my office is right next to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is pretty neat (and provides ample opportunities for becoming acquainted with government bureaucracy at its finest). I'm definitely grateful for my experience in Menomonie for preparing me to do this kind of research.

Other than that, I still run a lot (and still miss running in Menomonie), bike everywhere, sometimes hang with Erin who also lives in the city, and would still lose to Alexis in an arm wrestling match.

Throwback Arm-Wrestling video

Nicki Loeven

A picture of the Northern Presidential Mountains and the Cog Railway from the summit of Mt. Washington.

Hi LAKES crew! I hope everyone is enjoying summer in Menomonie. Since my summer doing LAKES in 2015, I graduated from Wells College with my B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and started graduate school. I am starting the 4^th year of my Ph.D. at Dartmouth in their Molecular and Cellular Biology Program in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. My thesis project in Jim Bliska’s laboratory is studying Burkholderia cenocepacia lung infections in Cystic Fibrosis. This may seem very distant from the environmental biology work I did during my summer at UW-Stout, but my LAKES project piqued my interest in microbes and I’m always grateful I took this opportunity.

Life in New Hampshire is great. In the last year I’ve done a ton of hiking and this winter I learned to ski! To the LAKES students this year, I wish you all the luck in your projects. You truly make a difference with the work you are doing. Work hard have and have a blast!

This is my PI, Jim Bliska, and I on the summit of Mt. Washington. How’s that for lab bonding?!

Lucia Possehl

Greetings from Burlington, Vermont! Since participating in the LAKES REU program last summer, I have explored new parts of the country and am heading into my senior year of college at the University of Vermont where I study geography and minor in history and environmental studies.

I spent the spring 2019 semester backpacking through the Colorado Plateau (the Four Corners region) with the Wild Rockies Field Institute learning about land use practices, water rights, ecology, and culture of the American Southwest. The course consisted of two months backpacking through desert canyons, canoeing down winding rivers, and several homestays in the Navajo and Hopi Nations. The alternative semester course considered many themes that we researched during my summer in Menomonie including rural culture, conservation perceptions, Indigenous land rights, and place-based identity.

Austin Gentel

This past year has been a very eventful one that just keeps on giving. Last Spring, I had a couple major life changing events. The first one was completing my Master of Arts Degree in Public Policy. The second and more impactful one is that I joined the US Army to become a CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear) Specialist. It was a long summer of intense training both physically and mentally but it paid off in the end. 

I lucked out with my first duty station being in Germany!! It has been a blast out here, especially being able to take part in the German Christmas Markets and the craziness of New Years in Germany (which is where I’m at in the picture). I've also been taking full advantage of my time out here and making the most of my travels. If anyone wants to make their way out here and enjoy Europe, I would love to have a travel buddy!! I know some great places and have big plans ahead!! Although, it will all have to wait until my current deployment in Turkey is over. 

It also may be awhile until I make it back to the United States, but until then I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying life to the fullest!! I do miss everyone that I worked with and had the privilege to meet during my brief stay in Menomonie. Oh, and I definitely miss the local beer and cheese curds!! Glad to hear the program is going strong and I can't wait for the time when I can return to Menomonie to catch up and make new memories!! 

I wish you all the best from this part of the World!! 

Your Friend, 

Austin Gentel 

Eniola Afolayan

Hello Lakes REU friends,

It's been a while! Last time I wrote for the alumni posts, I was getting ready to start my first year of grad school at UVA and now I'm getting ready for my second year. It's been a wonderful and challenging first year and there's nothing else I would rather being doing.

Lanna Anderson

I hope all is well and that everyone is having a great summer. I just recently graduated with my Masters of Biology degree from North Carolina A&T State University. It was an amazing two years conducting research on hypertension in African American athletes. One of the research papers that I helped wrote just recently got accepted into the American Journal of Hypertension Research. 

The Paper Title: Endothelial Dysfunction and Hypertension in African Americans: Overview of the Role of the Gut Microbiome. Please feel free to look it up and read about this critical issue. I miss everyone dearly and thank you for reaching out to see what we’ve all been up too. Enjoy the summer and I hope to hear from you all next year. 

- Lanna Anderson

Andrew Hutchens

After an action-packed graduate school application season and a superb final year as an undergraduate, I am relieved and glad to begin pursuing an economics PhD at North Carolina State University this fall. LAKES provided me with excellent (and fun) exposure to economic research and academia/research as a whole, and summer 2017 was an invaluable launch pad for gearing up to apply to and be successful in graduate school. Unlike that summer of 2017, however, I have spent the majority of this summer taking a small step back from being a student. After a month at home in North Miami Beach, I spent a few weeks in Lima, Peru visiting family. I also embarked on a harrowing 24-hour bus trip to my family's home village in (very) rural southern Peru, a trip which, besides allowing me to observe the beauty of the Peruvian countryside, firmly confirmed that I am very much a city boy. I haven't completely retreated from academic work though, as I have been working as a research assistant for Dr. Eric Edwards at NCSU since late May, with every new task fueling my excitement for graduate school even more. It'll soon be time to head up to Raleigh, but until then I'll be enjoying the comforts of home for a little while longer. Wishing everyone all the best!

Best regards,

Andrew Hutchens

Kirsten Ondris

Hello again everyone! I am an alumni of the LAKES 2018 group. While I miss the canoe trips, bikes rides, and fish fries of Menomonie from last summer, I have had the opportunity to travel to different parts of the country and world since then. After graduating with my civil engineering degree from the Cooper Union this past May, I spent a week hiking Acadia National Park in Maine, traveled through different cities in Europe, and met relatives and connected with my heritage in Slovakia with my family. Over the course of my travels throughout May and June, I was able to grasp history and landscapes that stretched far beyond my time and I look forward to new places to see and knowledge to gain in the future.

Jennifer Pantelios

This past May, I graduated from Beloit College (woohoo!!) which is located in Beloit, Wisconsin and earned my Bachelor of Science in Environmental Geology and with minors in Political Science & Biology. As of now I am living in Chicago and five days a week I commute north to the Lake Forest Open Lands Association. 

The Open Lands Association is a really awesome independent organization that has restored several plots of land to be native prairie, wetland, savanna, and woodland ecosystems. My job consists of removing aggressive, invasive plants that obstruct the diversity of flora within an ecosystem, several of which are garden escapes including Valerian and Buck-thorn. The organization does its best to use little herbicide and to remove plants through techniques of hand weeding, mowing, and dead heading. Additionally, I'm working on an educational pamphlet to educate the public on Bur Oak Blight, which is a fungus attacking Bur Oak trees due to increased rates of precipitation (which is caused by anthropogenically induced climate change). I am having a blast working outdoors amidst the plants and am learning a lot! 

In the photo, you can see I made friends with a snail who's sitting on my thumb. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me at JenniferPantelios@gmail.com! 

Cheers!

Lisette Solis

I am realizing as I write this that it’s been four years since I was an economics student participating in the LAKES program with Chris. The summer I spent in Menomonie was one of the best I had during my undergraduate experience. I learned so much about research and collecting data, and it was the first time I had the opportunity to live somewhere far from home.

I caught the travel bug after my summer in Menomonie. I spent the past few years living between New Zealand, California (where I’m from), and Central America. This gave me the opportunity to try different types of work and meet a lot of wonderful people.

At the start of this year, I came full circle and moved back to the San Francisco Bay Area. I recently started a job in the data department of a nonprofit called Fair Trade USA. We work certifying goods, primarily coffee and produce, from around the world as meeting labor standards. I manage the data from our yearly audits and get to learn about all the different farms. On the weekends, I am enjoying life in vibrant Oakland.

I miss all of you in Menomonie, and hope all the LAKES students this year are learning and enjoying as much as I did. 

An Interdisciplinary Approach

Interdisciplinary research is complex, but integrating multiple subjects together is an important method in identifying solutions to complex problems. This summer, I have learned how to look at issues from numerous angles and have also obtained critical thinking skills through my involvement in interdisciplinary research. While the focus of my project is economic-based, I have had the opportunity to help with the other research projects and have gained a greater understanding of the local water quality issues.

10 Heads Are Better Than One

        When I first received acceptance into the LAKES program, one of the components that most appealed to me was the foundation for interdisciplinary research. The idea that large-scale issues cannot be solved via one approach is incredibly important, as the collaboration of many minds is needed to solve problems effectively. I have found that understanding the problem of pollution in Lake Menomin is based on so much more than just scientific roots. There are other inputs to consider, in a myriad of forms. One form of input that I found especially interesting in relation to my and Madeline’s research is that of the geography team. In regard to our proposal for a floating wetland, I think their work with archives and their intent to understand Menomonie’s historical elements definitely comes into play. Delving into how people have connected with the lake in the past, both recreationally and emotionally, is critical when considering an installation of an interactive wetland. Additionally, I think Ivy and Esther’s work with GIS relates to our biochar research. With biochar, I think GIS could be helpful in terms of long-term projections. With placement of the product over a large scale, similar to the one of Lake Menomin, I believe mapping out these areas would help to increase the effectiveness of nutrient uptake by the biochar. Categorizing things like habitat types and nutrient flow via GIS mapping would allow a tool like biochar to reach its full potential. Even if these projections are hypothetical, I think it would be worthwhile to understand what results biochar could produce if it were actually placed in a larger body of water. Overall, in terms of skills gained, I think I have gained more confidence in myself, both from working in a team and also from conducting parts of research independently. I have also become more familiar with chemical laboratory techniques, SRP and TP concentration analysis, and have expanded my public speaking skills through interviews. As poster development and research conclusions draw nearer, I am growing more excited to present our findings to the public.

Enjoying Lake Menomin

Biochar Treatment

Sunset at Wakanda

How I learned GIS does not equal GPS. Sorry Esther.

 Interdisciplinary research has always been one of those things where I think, “ah yes, so important, must prioritize” without ever really knowing what it actually means. This summer has been my first real experience working across disciplines. With Ivy and Esther on geography, Madeline and Marcella on biology, Nell and Liv on political science, and the rest of us on economics, it’s a pretty diverse group. That’s made our research that much more interesting. I’m not just learning about economics, I’m learning about all these other subjects too, and I’m learning far more about them than I ever assumed I would.