Internships

2023 NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)

In the summer of 2023 I was given the opportunity to participate in a Research Opportunity for Undergraduates (REU) through the National Science Foundation at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. 

I worked with the learning science team to lead my research project on the impacts of inquiry-based practices on learner engagement. As it was summer and students were not in school, all research was conducted form the educator perspective. 

37 educators occupying formal (school-based) and informal (4H, environmental education, etc.) spaces received surveys with various questions regarding student engagement and the presence of inquiry-based activities. Thematic coding was used on all longform responses from educators to tag certain thematic elements of their responses. Responses were then compared between formal and informal educators. 

3 educators were also selected for an additional interview in which I picked their brains about their inquiry-based practices and how it directly or indirectly affects their students. The interviews primarily served to gauge how educators visualized inquiry in their field, and how that may differ from that of researchers. 

At the end of the 10 week internship I presented my research to the staff of GMRI as well as some wonderful family, friends, and professors that were able to attend via Zoom. A special thanks goes out to Dr. Amanda Dickes and Eliza Jacobs for their guidance with my research, Margaret Cummings for facilitating the internship and ensuring interns comfortably transitioned to Portland, Dr. Graham Sherwood for heading the program and training the next generation of ethical and professional researchers, and to the entire staff of GMRI for welcoming us for 10 weeks. 

Governor's Summer Intern 

During the summer of 2024 I worked with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management as a Watershed intern. Under the supervision of Kayla Werbianskyj, a senior environmental manager, I conducted fieldwork involving fish and water sample collection, followed by basic data entry using AIMS software. My duties while conducting electrofishing surveys included netting fish, maintaining our boat livewell, weighing and measuring fish, and recording data. I also used turbidimeters and data sondes to gather water quality data for our field sheets.

For macroinvertebrate surveys I was responsible for noting the primary substrate of the river as well as movement type as reported by the primary surveyor. After I recorded data, I then labeled and managed the macroinvertebrate preservative jars needed by surveyors for later analysis. Each waterbody received a qualitative habitat evaluation index (QHEI) score. The score was calculated based on the quality of the substrate in various sections of the waterbody and the surrounding habitat. I was responsible for doing a partial assessment of the habitat and entering our evaluation into the AIMS software.

I was also responsible for maintaining our fish consumption advisory data set. This project included ensuring our files matched the advisories listed on the ArcGIS consumption guide. This internship was a pivotal opportunity to apply classroom knowledge to real-world environmental challenges, enhancing my proficiency in scientific research and analysis.