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People of PRI

Get to know the archaeologists, biologists, chemists, ecologists, geologists, and other scientists and staff of the Prairie Research Institute!

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  • Brian Charles, botanist

    Meet Brian Charles, a botanist originally from the West Coast, but now rooted in the Midwest. Brian joined the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) this year and primarily works to update the Endangered and Threatened plant species records and rankings for Illinois.

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  • Nicholas Iacaruso, graduate researcher

    Nicholas Iacaruso is a graduate student at the Illinois Natural History Survey in the Collaborative Ecological Genetics Laboratory (CEGL) working under Mark Davis, focusing on monitoring freshwater fish populations using environmental DNA (eDNA). Iacaruso grew up near Chesapeake Bay, which inspired his interests in aquatic ecosystems before he learned about ecological genetics, and later, about environmental DNA, or eDNA.

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  • Jordyn Chace, graduate student

    Jordyn Chace says she has always wanted to be a conservation biologist, even before she knew that it was a real career. Now she's a bat genomicist with the Illinois Natural History Survey.

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  • Elizabeth Watts Malouchos, research archaeologist

    Elizabeth Watts Malouchos recently answered some questions about her career in archaeology, commonly-held misconceptions about archaeology, and her advice for those just starting out in the field.

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  • Jim Pisell, staff archaeologist

    Jim Pisell has been with the Illinois State Archaeological Survey for nearly 20 years, and while technology has changed the face and pace of what archaeology looks like today, at its core Jim believes it's deeper than artifacts—it is a type of informed storytelling. 

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  • Nahal Hoghooghi, postdoctoral researcher

    Postdoctoral researcher Nahal Hoghooghi is one of the newest members of the Illinois State Water Survey team! She will conduct watershed hydrological modeling and water supply planning studies across Illinois.

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  • Nico Galardy, IT technical associate

    Meet the Illinois State Geological Survey's new IT technical associate, Nico Galardy! Nico brings eight years of desktop computer support experience, with five of those being in the educational field.

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  • Megan Cowan-Cranmer, field biologist

    Megan Cowan-Cranmer has been a field biologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey's Great Rivers Field Station for over 14 years, and is also this year's 2021 Confluence Conservation Leader awardee. Confluence Conservation Leader recipients work tirelessly to advocate, educate and inspire action in areas of environmental education, sustainability, and land conservation.

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  • Robbie Emmet, postdoctoral research associate

    Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) postdoctoral research associate Robbie Emmet is looking forward to working with INHS researchers and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) staff to answer management-relevant research questions and combine the multiple amazing data sets that IDNR has collected for decades.

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  • Jessica Homan, social media intern

    Social media intern Jessica Homan’s passion for her work revolves around communications. She was drawn to intern at the Prairie Research Institute after learning about the impact its services and research has on citizens and scientists in Illinois and beyond—plenty of good stories to tell!

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