Understanding threats to Brassica crops: A case study
Sammie Alexander
Hometown: Roanoke, VA
Professional interests: predicting the impacts of anthropogenic-induced change on natural processes, such as population growth and habitat structuring in threatened aquatic or terrestrial environments.
Sammie Alexander intends on pursuing an accelerated masters in Environmental Science and Policy beginning her senior year, in order to further develop her career as a researcher. In the future, she hopes to rehabilitate human-impacted ecosystems by integrating monitoring programs, GIS, and reintroduction programs.
Prior to attending SMSC, Sammie worked as a field technician in a fisheries ecology lab aimed at assessing the biodiversity within a freshwater tidal ecosystem recovering from eutrophication. She also worked as a laboratory technician in a freshwater ecology lab, extracting and classifying macroinvertebrates from Virginia streams. On the weekends, Sammie interacted with families as a STEM educator at the Children’s Science Center Lab leading marine animal feedings, assisting in robotics demonstrations, and facilitating chemistry experiments. Following her semester in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at SMSC, she intends on spreading conservation awareness to the general public as well as the scientific community through her undergraduate and graduate research in ecology.
University: George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
Degree: Environmental Science, B.S.
Concentration: Marine, Estuarine & Freshwater Ecology
Minor: Geographic Information Systems; Conservation Studies
Expected Graduation: May 2018
Hello! We are three students from the Fall 2016 Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation cohort. Over the course of our semester, we conducted a monitoring study on the Farm at Sunnyside to assess Brassica crop health in one of the primary crop fields on the farm. Specifically, we investigated the relationship between groundhogs and the spread of a disease that targets Brassica crops, black rot (Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris). Read more about our team below.
Best,
The Brassica Monitoring Team
Our Team.
Spencer Gee
University: George Mason University
Degree: Environmental Science
Concentration: Conservation
Minor: Recreational Management
Expected Graduation: May 2018
Hometown: Tazewell, VA
Professional Interests: Working with and leading Environmental Education and Outreach programs, and the ongoing conservation of American amphibians.
Spencer has worked with education programs designed for children for the past three years. As a lifetime 4-H member, she has done programming and taught creative science classes at the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational Center for two years, as well as lead youth in songs, games, and group activities every summer. During the summer season, she also helps educate youth attending camp on the Northern Virginia ecosystem through interactive classes and evening activities. She helps educate middle-aged youth on the local watersheds in the Fairfax area during the school semester through hands-on field assessments and explanations.
In the future, she hopes to use the knowledge she has gained this semester to help people of all ages better understand their natural surroundings.
Joey Guite
Professional Interests: Conservation; sustainable agriculture; fungi and plant associations
Joseph studies Chemistry, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at George Mason University and the Smithsonian Institute located in Front Royal, Virginia. His studies have also included the identification of plants and fungi, basic anthropology, and the skills of non-industrial peoples.
He hopes to integrate diverse fields of research so that human endeavors can be managed holistically and sustainably, as well as improve non-logic based and environmentally questionable human practices by researching, for example, location specific, energy saving alternatives to food crops, building materials, and home designs. His goals are inspired by the field of mycoremediation, which utilizes a widespread, naturally occurring resource (fungi) to improve soils, protect waterways from bacterial contaminants, and remove hydrocarbons and other pollutants from the environment.
Degree: Chemistry, B.S.
Minor: Conservation Studies
Expected Graduation: May 2017
Hometown: Marshall, VA