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SAN LUIS OBISPO — Two Cal Poly graduate students in the biological sciences program were awarded National Science Foundation (NSF), Graduate Research FellowshipsTo support their ongoing research into responses to environmental changes to California’s plants and animals.
Annie Meeder is a Paso Robles first-year graduate student. She works with Jenn Yost, her faculty advisor in the Biological Sciences Department to study the dynamics of Santa Cruz Island vegetation communities. They also examine how these communities have changed over time.
Meeder plans to continue her research in this field and pursue a doctorate in island vegetation communities and their response history, present, and future disturbances. She hopes her research can be used as a model for assessing vegetation dynamics and management strategies in both island systems and mainland areas where vegetation has undergone alteration from overgrazing — and that work can be used to help predict island vegetation response to climate change.
“My first exposure to ecology and science was in high school on a trip to Santa Cruz Island doing volunteer research,” Meeder said. “I now help lead those trips and mentor high schoolers. As a researcher on Santa Cruz Island, I have had an incredible opportunity with Dr. Yost to just collect awesome data, do meaningful work, and give Cal Poly students and faculty alike an incredible research experience.”
Savannah Weaver, a second-year graduate student from San José, plans to continue to study the water balance of reptiles, specifically how water requirements and water-conserving adaptations vary over time and among species and different habitats.
“As the climate crisis continues and drought and heatwaves become more frequent and intense, understanding the water requirements of reptiles, and all animals, will be essential for conservation management,” she said.
Under the guidance of Emily Taylor, a professor in the Biological Science Department, Weaver has been studying the abundant Western Fence Lizard (Sceloporus westernis). Weaver hopes to continue her doctoral studies on snakes and lizards.
“I’ve always loved nature, and I’ve become increasingly passionate about the conservation of wildlife and wild landscapes,” Weaver said. “When I started graduate school with Dr. Taylor, I realized that very little was known about reptile water balance, despite its importance. I read everything I could about it and was immediately hooked, because there was so much information that I felt was missing and that I could try to figure out.”
Two Cal Poly alumni, Gabriel Medina-Kim (Computer Science, ’20) and Nicole Siguenza (Biochemistry and Microbiology, ’20) were also awarded fellowships. Medina Kim is currently in the second year in Rensselaer Polytechnic institute in Troy, New York’s doctoral program in science technology studies. He was previously selected for the CSU Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program, a program that supports the development of future faculty members and doctoral education. Siguenza, who is pursuing a doctorate on biomedical science at UC San Diego in her second year, is currently enrolled in her second year.
“I am thrilled to see our students and alumni be recognized for their outstanding work in their fields and receive support from the NSF to continue that work,” said Bob Crockett, Cal Poly’s administrator in charge of Research, Economic Development and Graduate Education. “These students are tremendous examples of what can be done at Cal Poly when our students and faculty can collaborate.”
The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions.
Fellowships offer students a $34,000 annual stipend over three years, along with a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees. They also provide access to professional development opportunities for NSF-supported graduate students.
Photo information:
Top: Meeder.jpg — Annie Meeder on a grassland plot on Santa Cruz Island
Weaver.jpg — Savannah Weaver holding a Brown Treesnake (Boiga irregularis) while on a research trip in Guam.
Both photos ourtesy Cal Poly
April 27, 2022
Contact: Keegan Koberl
805-458-9302; [email protected]
