People and Programs

Public Scholarship and Engagement is proud to announce the inaugural cohort of UC Davis graduate students who were accepted into the competitive Public Scholars for the Future fellowship. This program, which launched in spring 2022 in partnership with UC Davis Graduate Studies, is designed to support doctoral students in developing community-engaged research with non-university partners.

CMSI Affiliates Hollis Jones (Ecology), Andrea Odell (Ecology), and Meghan Zulian (Earth and Planetary Sciences) are among the 11 doctoral candidates chosen.

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Michael ‘Moose’ O'Donnell to the Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute (CMSI) as our new Deputy Director, starting on July 15th, 2022.

The Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. John Largier, a professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy, as the new Director of the Bodega Marine Laboratory, effective April 1, 2022.

Congratulations to Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute affiliates Jacqueline Rajerison, a recent UC Davis graduate in the Marine and Coastal Science major, and Sam Walkes, a Ph.D. student in the Graduate Group in Ecology, who were both awarded 2022 Aquarium of the Pacific African American Scholarships.

From Jeff's obituary in The Press Democrat:

Jeffery R. Demarest—biologist, naturalist, world traveler, great cook, and bon vivant—passed suddenly and unexpectedly on January 12, 2022, at his home in Healdsburg, CA. Martha Noble, Jeff's wife of 36 years, was beside him. He is dearly missed by his wife, countless friends, and colleagues from across the country and beyond.

The Ecological Society of America (ESA) announced the Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Award (GSPA) 2022 cohort, which includes two UC Davis Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute affiliates, Jessica Griffin and Sophie Zhu. This award provides graduate students with the opportunity to participate in a virtual Congressional Visits Day.

Congratulations to CMSI Affiliates Dr. Jay Stachowicz, Professor and Department Chair in the Department of Evolution and Ecology, and Dr. Christine Kreuder Johnson, Professor of Medicine & Epidemiology at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine for being elected 2021 American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellows.

David Gold, assistant professor in the UC Davis Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, has received a CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to investigate biomarkers for identifying the oldest animal fossils on Earth.

The 2021-22 academic year brought UC Davis students back to campus, and a new set of challenges and opportunities for the Marine and Coastal Science (MCS) major Lead Mentor. Meghan Zulian, a doctoral student in the Ocean Climate lab at UC Davis & Bodega Marine Laboratory, is tasked with mentoring, teaching, and guiding the undergraduate MCS majors through this year.

“Overall, this was an incredibly rewarding experience that opened my eyes to the creativity and organization involved in program management, while also demonstrating to me how truly enjoyable and invigorating mentorship is.”

-Priya Shukla