Water Scholars Awardees Fall 2022

Published Nov 21, 2022 by

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Congratulations to the Fall 2022 cohort of Water Scholars! The ECU Water Resources Center is proud to support these innovators as they explore and innovate topics related to water in their field of study.

The Water Scholars program is open to all ECU students, so please keep your eyes open for the next deadline in Spring 2023!

Fall 2022 Awardees:

Emma Teed (MS, Biology)

Public education of monitoring and maintaining local waterways through participation in the Earth Echo Water Challenge. (Mentor: Heather Vance-Chalcraft)

“I am so thankful for the Water Scholars Award. From this award, I will be able to continue fostering a relationship with the wonderful staff at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at Greenville and Contentnea Creek. This award also allows me to provide and train the Museum with citizen science water quality test kits and other monitoring equipment that will be incorporated into the Museum’s curriculum, hopefully sparking curiosity in the next generation of STEM researchers.”

Deja Drummond (Environmental Engineering)

Desorption Characteristics of Recycled and Manufactured Materials in Wastewater Treatment Plants. (Mentor: Natasha Bell)

“Being a Water Scholars recipient will aid in getting the resources to analyze how the same materials used to take excess nutrients out of treated wastewater will do as a substrate for plants to grow in. The materials being analyzed to promote full circle recycling have been used for other manufacturing purposes, donated to see how much phosphorous they can sorb in a setting such as a wastewater treatment plant, and reused again to examine plant growth.”

Christine Chan (Biology and Environmental Studies)

Impacts of ship-channel dredging on suspended marine detritus and zooplankton offshore of Cape Fear. (Mentor: Rebecca Asch)

“Thanks to the support of the Water Scholars Award, we will be able to purchase more lab equipment and streamline the data analysis process. This award also provides the lab with the opportunity to train more undergraduate students in data analysis techniques, allowing the Asch lab to expand and introduce more students to research in marine biology.”

Haley Hagemeier (Environmental and Organismic Biology)

Investigating Salinity Tolerance and Parasite Diversity in Native North Carolina Estuary Xanthidae and the Invasive Parasitic Barnacle, L. panopaei. (Mentor: April Blakeslee)

“This award will allow me to focus on my research and will allow me to implement a field experiment to study the effects that salinity has on the survival on a native North Carolina mud crab. It will also allow me to examine the parasite diversity and abundance present in two native mud crabs.”

Anjalee Hou (Economics)

Asset Mapping and Promoting Economic Development of the Tar-Pamlico River Basin Blue Economy Corridor. (Mentor: Emily Yeager)

“I am so honored to accept the Water Scholars Award. This program will help benefit my project by helping to increase awareness of community assets and promoting the Tar-Pamlico Blue Economy Corridor.“

Chloe Gabriel (MS, Biology)

Using molecular genetics to understand prevalence and spread of Black Gill Disease (BGD) in North Carolina’s penaeid shrimp fishery. (Mentor: April Blakeslee)

“This award helps my work by allowing me to work at the Coastal Studies Institute over the summer to add another season of data to my thesis!“

Cole Dickerson (Engineering)

Surfboard Leash Water Quality Sensor. (Mentor: Faete Filho)

“Receiving a Water Scholars award means I have the faculty support and resources necessary to develop a surfboard leash-embedded water quality sensor to the best of my ability. I am grateful for the opportunity to take part in the Water Resource Center’s mission to perform world-class research.”

Jonathan Teboul (MS, Geography)

Influence of Channel Bend Curvature on Debris-Flow-Driven Avulsion on Alluvial Fans, Explored through Discrete Simulations. (Mentor: Scott Lecce)

“This award will go directly toward the maintenance and upkeep of the debris-flow flume in the ECU Geomorphic Modeling Laboratory, as well as the procurement of sediments to be used in the flume throughout my study.”

Bailey Kephart (MS, Biology)

Determining effects of land management on Eastern Black Rail occupancy of tidal marshes: is hydrology and vegetation structure improved by prescribed burning? (Mentor: Susan McRae)