Noelle Relles ~ WM Graduate Council

I’m Noelle Relles, a current Masters student within the Department of Biological Sciences. My research explores coral reef ecology by looking at the change in coral reef community structure over time and space. I am the current VIMS GSA Co-President and the William & Mary GSA Co-Treasurer.

Kersey Sturdivant ~ WM Graduate Council

I am a PhD student working in the benthic lab with Bob Diaz. My research interests center around understanding the effects of hypoxia on trophic dynamics and the functional importance of benthic production in coastal ecosystems. I am also interested in the significance of biodiversity on ecosystem function, and the effects of global climate change on estuarine and coastal communities. I am the current VIMS GSA Co-President and the William & Mary GSA Co-Treasurer.

Lila Rose ~ Vice-President

I am a Ph.D. student in the Physical Sciences department working in Dr. Steven Kuehl’s lab. My work involves taking marine sediment cores of the continental slope off the coast of New Zealand. I use radioisotopes, geochemical tools, physical properties analyses and X-radiography to characterized modern and ancient sedimentation, including how and when sediments were delivered to the marine environment. I’m interested in how climate and land use change impacts sediment availability, transport and ultimate preservation of strata on the shelf. Both my MS and current project are part of the larger MARGINS Source to Sink program. The reason I am co-VP of the GSA is because I think it is important be part of the infrastructure necessary to help people properly raise questions and concerns to the administration, but also to have a social forum where we can relax, chill and have some fun!

Mark Henderson ~ Co-Treasurer

I am currently a Ph.D. student working with Mary Fabrizio in the Department of Fisheries Science. I am still developing my dissertation topic, but I will most likely use acoustic telemetry, and other tagging techniques, to monitor the behavior and population dynamics of summer flounder. As treasurer of the GSA I maintain our budget to ensure we have sufficient funds to host the numerous graduate student events (Fall party, Spring party, TGIF, movie nights, etc.).

Anna Huntley ~ Secretary

I am currently a Masters student in the Environmental and Aquatic Animal Health (EAAH) department. My research is focused on the effects of environmental factors on disease progression in blue crabs infected with the parasitic dinoflagellate, Hematodinium sp. I think it is very important as a grad student to be involved in the decisions that affect our student body and also to provide a venue for students to come together and discuss their thoughts and concerns in an open atmosphere. I am happy to donate my time as secretary for the GSA to ensure that students at VIMS continue to be well-represented.

Heidi Geisz ~ Ex-Com Member

I currently working with Rebecca Dickhut and Hugh Ducklow and I am broadly interested in examining food web dynamics by investigating the foraging ecology of higher predators. Currently, my dissertation focuses on the transport and fate of organic contaminants in Antarctica, their incorporation into the Antarctic food web, particularly higher predators, and their use as tracers in seabirds breeding on the Antarctic peninsula. I was the GSA co-president for two years and have done some work with the VIMS Greenteam.

Lindsey Kraatz ~ Ex-Com Member

I am a Ph.D student working with Carl Friedrichs and Jesse McNinch in the Physical Sciences. My dissertation is a part of a larger interdisciplinary study called MUDBED, and I am studying bedform morphology on various spatial and temporal scales in physically and biologically dominated environments. I was the GSA President for two years and the President of the William and Mary Graduate Council. I am now excited to work specifically on VIMS student issues and making it the best working and social environment as possible.