| |
ABOUT US
-
PERSONNEL
-
STUDENTS
HRI STUDENTS
|
|
|
|
|
|
OVERVIEW:
There are a large number of students working under the direction of the HRI
Endowed Faculty and
Faculty Research Associates in the
HRI building.
Most are Masters of Science or PhD students, but some are undergraduates. Some students
are Harte Fellows, funded by the HRI endowment, others are Research
Assistants, funded by specific research grants of the various
researchers. |
|
|
SANDRA S. ARISMENDEZ
HRI PHD STUDENT
 Sandra
Arismendez is a native of South Texas pursuing a doctoral degree in the
University’s Coastal and Marine System Science PhD program. Her
co-advisors are Dr. Paul Montagna, Endowed Chair for Ecosystem Studies
and Modeling, and Dr. Wes Tunnell, Associate Director and Harte
Research Scientist. Prior to returning to academia, Sandra was employed
by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for 11 years, first as
a natural resource coastal planner for the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program,
then as an aquatic scientist for the Total Maximum Daily Load Program.
Sandra received a federal grant from NOAA to assist in the development of a large marine ecosystem model for the Gulf of
Mexico. Her research interests include:
· water quality monitoring, assessment and restoration
· coastal watershed management
· estuarine biodiversity
· landscape ecology using GIS |
|
|
MAGGIE DALTHORP
HRI PHD STUDENT
Maggie Dalthorp (B.S. Geology, MBA) is a geologist and resource planner with a broad background in energy,
 economics,
public policy and environmental issues. Maggie worked for a major oil company before starting a natural resource planning firm that provided
stakeholder involvement for Texas’ 50-year water plan,
conducted land use/watershed surveys and performed environmental assessments. Maggie authored the AAPG publication “Environmental Issues in the Oil
and Gas Industry” and enjoys outreach work including studying water at Mexico’s El Cielo Biosphere. As a PhD student she works with
Dr. Thomas Naehr and Dr. Ian MacDonald researching natural hydrocarbon
seeps and the global carbon cycle. |
|
|
PETER ETNOYER
HRI PHD STUDENT
Peter Etnoyer is working with HRI's endowed chair for marine
biodiversity, Dr. Tom Shirley. Peter's focus
is on deep-sea corals and their associated invertebrates in the Gulf of Mexico
and Gulf of Alaska. His research interests include:
· octocoral systematics
· biogeography
· marine ecology
· marine conservatio
· spatial information systems
His field research began in the Philippine Sulu Sea and has since taken him to shallow tropical sites throughout the Caribbean and deep sites
in the North Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico using manned submersibles and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs). He enjoys scuba diving, kayaking,
filmmaking and writing, especially for the
Deep Sea News, an online blog reporting on the world’s largest environment.
|
|
|
JOHN FROESCHKE
HRI PHD STUDENT
John Froeschke is a Graduate Research Associate at the HRI. He is working with
Dr. Greg Stunz on t he ecology of estuarine
and coastal fishes in the Gulf of Mexico. He is interested in fisheries ecology, estuarine, coastal, and reef fish ecology, marine ecology,
marine conservation and spatial information systems. His current
research focuses on the ecology of marine fishes and the factors that
contribute to high quality habitat for marine fishes and identifying
habitat critical for ecosystem persistence. His previous research has
focused on the ecology of temperate reef fishes in the eastern Pacific
and the effectiveness of marine reserves as a management tool in this
region. His research studying fishes has taken him throughout the
eastern Pacific, the Gulf of California and the Caribbean.
 TAMUCC BIO |
|
|
GARY HARALSON
HRI PHD STUDENT
 Gary Haralson is a
native of Corpus Christi. He received a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Texas in Austin
and a Master of Science in Environmental Science from TAMU-CC, and is pursuing a doctoral degree in the university’s Coastal and Marine System Science.
Dr. Wes Tunnell and
Dr. Kevin Strychar are his PhD co-advisors. Gary has been employed as a Pharmacist in the area for the past 29 years.
His research interests include:
· coral immunity
· coral reef ecology
· natural pharmaceutical products
· human disease and immunity |
|
|
ERIN HILL
HRI PHD STUDENT
Erin Hill is a PhD student under HRI endowed chair
Dr. Paul Montagna researching benthic, nekton and avian responses to freshwater inflows into the Nueces River Delta and developing new
freshwater management tools for regulators. She is also a research associate for the Center for Coastal Studies at TAMUCC
where she works on taxonomic identification and trophic dynamics of benthic invertebrates and fish, bird habitat usage and distribution, and water and sediment quality.
Other interests include subtropical and tropical algal communities.
TAMUCC BIO |
|
|
MORGAN KILGOUR
HRI PHD STUDENT
Morgan Kilgour works with HRI's endowed chair for marine biodiversity,
Dr. Tom Shirley. She received her bachelor's degree in Marine Biology in 2003 from the University of California at Santa Cruz.
As an undergraduate she volunteered at UCSC's Marine Mammal Performance and Physiology Project and participated in a marine
field quarter in Moorea, French Polynesia.
 After graduating Ms. Kilgour worked as a lab assistant to the Salmon Population
Analysis Team for the NOAA Fisheries lab in Santa Cruz. She recently (2007) finished her Master's degree in Biology at Texas
A&M University-Corpus Christi. Her Master's thesis focused on the bathymetric and spatial distribution of five crab species
on and around World War II shipwrecks in the northern Gulf of Mexico. She presented her research at numerous symposia and
participated in the 2006 Coral Reef Ecology Class in Quintana Roo, Mexico, and the 7.5 Fathom Reef Expedition. She used ROVs
for data collection on the Deep Wrecks Project in the Gulf of Mexico and made her first submersible dive on the Pisces V
exploring invertebrate assemblages on Hawaiian seamounts. She also collected crab data for the MADS cruise in Glacier Bay,
Alaska. Morgan's interests include:
· invertebrate community ecology
· deep sea ecology
· role of artificial substrates in organism distribution
|
|
|
KEVIN NELSON
HRI PHD STUDENT
Kevin Nelson (B.S. Psychology, MS Computer Science) is a PhD student
 and graduate
research assistant working with Dr. Paul Montagna,
endowed chair for HRI's Ecosystems and Modeling program. While pursuing his interests in estuarine metabolism and nutrient flux, Kevin
is developing ecosystem monitoring tools for scientists and managers. Kevin's other research interests include scientific information
systems and long-term climate variability. Coastal and marine system science is a new direction for Kevin after
10 years in the
information systems industry. When not working or studying, Kevin enjoys Texas history and birding and
traveling with his wife, Shelly.
TAMUCC BIO |
|
|
JOHN WOOD
HRI PHD STUDENT
John S. Wood is currently a student in TAMU-CC's Coastal & Marine System Sciences PhD program under a Harte Fellowship grant.
While getting his doctorate, he is working with TAMU-CC as an adjunct professor of Geographic Information Sciences (GIS)
and with the HRI as a research associate. Dr. Wes Tunnell is his PhD
Advisor. Mr. Wood's research interests include:
· use of spatial information in environmental research
· coastal and wetlands management
· habitat conservation
· site selection and planning
· GIS education
TAMUCC BIO
GULFBASE BIO
PAPER: GIS AT HRI |
|
|
JENNY WRAST
HRI MS STUDENT
Jenny Wrast is a graduate research assistant working with
 HRI’s Endowed Research Professor
Dr. Greg Stunz conducting fisheries ecology research. Specifically, her thesis research is on the spatial and temporal variability in oyster reef food web structure compared to other estuarine habitats.
She received her undergraduate degree from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in Biology, and is interested in fisheries ecology and management,
ecosystem dynamics and habitat value.
TAMUCC BIO |
