Mentoring and Engagement

Mentoring

Mentorship is an obligation, a privilege, and my favorite part of being a scientist. I have had the opportunity to mentor a number of students and peers throughout my career.

Below I list undergraduate students that have undertaken independent research projects under my mentorship.

I also mentored a cohort of elementary to middle school students in SE Michigan community (Ypsilanti) for six years (2013-2019) as a Science Olympiad coach. One of our first tournaments is pictured in the banner photo above.

Undergraduate mentees

Ryan Arnott joined the Zamudio lab at UT in Fall 2022. His primary research project focuses on molecular detection of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) in swab samples from historical museum specimens of Black-spotted Newts (Notophthalmus meridionalis) collected in South Texas and Northern Mexico. Collaborators on this project include Maia Rogers, previous REU student Clarissa Bustamante Lopez, and Drew Davis.

Maia Rogers joined the Zamudio lab at UT as an REU student through the UT InSTInCT Program in Summer 2022. During her REU she completed pilot studies and groundwork for the Black-spotted Newt project, and also began a project on secondary contact zone species dynamics in Patchnose Snakes (Salvadora spp.) under the mentorship of Kelly Zamudio and Travis LaDuc. Maia is currently making progress on both of these research projects.

Clarissa Bustamante Lopez joined the Zamudio lab at UT as an REU student through the UT InSTInCT Program in Summer 2022. During her REU Clarissa became interested in the amphibian-Bd system, and piloted molecular work for Bd assays on swabs collected from museum specimens. She tested an optimized extraction and qPCR protocol on an initial subset of Black-spotted Newt swabs. She also collaborated on the Patchnose Snake (Salvadora spp.) contact zone project under the mentorship of Kelly Zamudio and Travis LaDuc.
Clarissa is currently completing her Bachelor's degree at Christian Brothers University in Memphis, TN.

Rebecca Clemons

Rebecca Clemons completed a UROP (Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program) at the University of Michigan and continued working with me for an additional 2+ years. Her UROP project focused on how habitat fragmentation impacts infection prevalence of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) in Brazilian amphibians. Rebecca continued on in the James Lab as the lab manager and then as a Master's student. Her MSc thesis included a fascinating study of mycoviruses that infect Bd. Rebecca is now a PhD student in the Zamudio Lab at UT Austin and is planning to research how host and pathogen genetics affect disease outcomes in the amphibian-Bd system.

Nick Farrugia

Nick Farrugia completed a UROP independent research project at the University of Michigan. Nick's UROP project focused on non-fungal eukaryotic pathogens in frogs from different habitat types (preserved Atlantic rainforest vs. actively managed agroforest) in Bahia, Brazil.

SciComm Training

Between the end of my master's and the beginning of my PhD, I worked as a Herpetologist at Ann Arbor Natural Area Preservation. While employed at NAP, I gained experience both in educating/training the public, and in organizing citizen science surveys (in this case, of frogs and toads, turtles, and salamanders).

I later participated in the Detroit Zoo's Portal to the Public Science Communication Fellowship. Through this fellowship I gained training in communicating science with non-scientific audiences of all ages, and developed a hands-on table top activity about my research on disease susceptibility in frogs. I have taken part in "Scientist Days" at the Detroit Zoo and Ann Arbor Summer Fest where members of the public (especially children) come to visit a table of scientists presenting research through hands-on activities.

I also gained training through the Toledo Zoo's Amphibian Academy. At this workshop, I not only learned about amphibian conservation techniques, but also about engaging the public in amphibian biology, advocacy, and citizen scientist research.

Some local kiddos checking out a frog "sensory tank," where metamorphosis figurines sit on top of a foam lily pad. Below in the water are giant tapioca pearls (used in boba tea) that look and feel like squishy frog eggs!

Community Engagement

For me, working with communities outside of the academic science community is more than just a "Broader Impacts" checkbox - it is a privilege and a responsibility. I find this work to be personally fulfilling and grounding. Sharing my fascination with the natural world and learning the valuable ways non-academic scientists and non-scientists engage with nature reminds me why I want to be part of the effort to protect nature.

Throughout my PhD I have volunteered with University of Michigan F.E.M.M.E.S. (Women+ Excelling More in Math, Engineering, and the Sciences). F.E.M.M.E.S. is a community engagement and advocacy group that supports women and girls interested in STEM fields. F.E.M.M.E.S. at UM hosts biannual Capstone events that bring together hundreds of 4th-6th grade girls from Michigan for a fun-filled day of hands-on STEM activities. I volunteered with F.E.M.M.E.S. for six years and served on the executive board for three years. I led and collaborated on an effort to make the organization more inclusive of all gender minorities (rather than only welcoming cis women and girls).

I also served as a Genetics instructor for middle schoolers through the University of Michigan GISE (Girls in Science and Engineering) Camp for four summers (2016-2019). Through collaborations with co-instructors I developed a new curriculum focused on hands-on active learning that centers the achievements and contributions of diverse women scientists historically and today.

Loading "mystery" PCR products into an agarose gel with a camper at the UM GISE Camp (June 2018)