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About
I am a microbiologist with a special interest in fungal ecology and evolution. The diverse microbial communities that surround us fascinate me, and I love thinking about how microbes respond to their changing environments over time. I focus my research on the yeasts, which are the large group of diverse single-celled fungi. Some yeasts, such as the yeasts that make bread and alcoholic beverages, are very familiar, but the world is full of many other kinds of yeasts. These microbes live in almost any imaginable habitat, and are a great way to explore how microbes evolve, and how they interact with their natural world. I love bringing my passion for microbiology to students, and I love challenging them to think about how they interact with microbes in their daily lives.
Degrees
Ph.D., Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 2006-2012
B.S., Genetics and Plant Biology, University of California, Berkeley, 1998 – 2002
Student Projects
Student research on yeasts was featured in the September 3, 2021 issue of Wheaton News!