Previous REUs
2021
Vanessa Aguayo
Biology, Mt. Saint Mary’s University
Mentor: Dr. Adriane Jones (MSMU)
Project: Microbiome associated with giant kelp
Kristina Fleetwood
Marine Biology, University of California Santa Cruz
Mentors: Dr. Rita Mehta and Kelley Voss (UCSC)
Project: Octopus self-defense
Cristina Garcia-Garcia
Biology, Mt. Saint Mary’s University
Mentor: Dr. Adriane Jones (MSMU)
Project: Microbiome associated with giant kelp
Maya Gardner
Biology, Grinnell College
Mentors: Dr. Carly Kenkel and Wyatt Million (USC)
Project: Local adaptation and growth of corals
Liam McGouldrick
Biology and Environmental Science, Indiana University
Mentors: Dr. Carly Kenkel and Wyatt Million (USC)
Project: Local adaptation and growth of corals
Michelle Paramo-Reyes
Biology, Ventura College
Mentors: Dr. Sergey Nuzhdin, Inessa Chandra, Dr. Ignacio Navarrete, and Dr. Diane Kim (USC)
Project: Kelp aquaculture (seed bank and diel patterns)
Bryan Rodriguez
Biological Science, California State University Fullerton
Mentors: Dr. David Hutchins and Nina Yang (USC)
Project: Nitrogen fixers in a warming ocean
Janell Segura
Biology, Mt. Saint Mary’s University
Mentors: Dr. Sergey Nuzhdin, Inessa Chandra, Dr. Ignacio Navarrete, and Dr. Diane Kim (USC)
Project: Kelp aquaculture (seed bank and diel patterns)
Erin Tharp
Environmental Studies, USC
Mentors: Dr. Larry Allen and Elizabeth Burns (California State University Northridge)
Project: Catalina kelp forest ecology
Brayden Wiley
Marine Biology, San Diego State University
Mentors: Dr. Matthew Edwards and Darrin Ambat (SDSU)
Project: Blue-banded goby reproductive output and behavior under ocean acidification
2020
Postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2019
Benjamin Tyler Burch
Environmental Science, Temple University
Mentors: Dr. Sergey Nuzhdin, Dr. Andrew Gracey, Jose Diesel, and Kelly DeWeese (USC)
Project: Influence of phytohormones on the growth of giant kelp sporophytes
Kyle Benjamin Donnelly
Marine Biology and Marine Fisheries, Texas A&M Galveston
Mentors: Dr. Devaleena Pradhan (Idaho State University), Dr. Matthew Grober (Georgia State University), and Katrina White
Project: Impacts of the the stress hormone cortisol on the parenting behavior of blue-banded goby
Ryan Hallisey
Marine Biology, University of California Santa Cruz
Mentors: Dr. Rita Mehta and Katherine Dale (UCSC)
Project: Influence of temperate underwater environmental factors on California moray eel coloration and pattern
Andrea Marie Munoz
Environmental Biology, Columbia University
Mentors: Dr. Adriane Jones (MSMU) and Dr. Diane Kim (USC)
Project: Influence of ciliates on the early growth of giant kelp
Sarah Isabella Ortiz
Environmental Science, Barnard College
Mentors: Dr. Doug Capone and Yubin Raut (USC)
Project: Sponge seaweed-associated nitrogen fixation off the coast of Catalina Island
Sophia Julie Pinter
Earth Science, University of California Santa Cruz
Mentors: Dr. Lynn Dodd, Dr. Su Jin Lee, and Alex Long (USC); Dr. Ben Hagedorn (California State University Long Beach)
Project: Characterizing the hydrology of Catalina Island
Jean Sabety
Ecology, Pasadena Community College
Mentors: Dr. Sergey Nuzhdin, Dr. Andrew Gracey, Jose Diesel, and Kelly DeWeese (USC)
Project: RNA extraction from giant kelp
Nikita Sridhar
Marine Biology, University of California Los Angeles
Mentors: Dr. Rita Mehta and Kelly Voss (UCSC)
Project: Influence of phytohormones on the growth of giant kelp sporophytes
For years prior to 2019, see our archived site on the Wayback Machine.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1852220. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.