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People of PRI
Illinois Natural History Survey

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  • Sara Sawicki waving

    Sara Sawicki, water quality specialist

    Aug 25, 2022 8:00 am

    Sara Sawicki joined INHS on August 16th as a water quality specialist with the Illinois River Biological Station (IRBS) long-term resource monitoring program. She earned her bachelor's degree in environmental science from Dominican University and her Master’s degree in environmental science from Alaska Pacific University, where she performed water sampling and analysis work for a USGS project involving a glacier and its watershed. 

  • Katey Strailey seated by a fish tank

    Katey Strailey, postdoctoral researcher

    Oct 10, 2022 11:00 am

    I’m really excited to get to do applied research. For me, it’s the best of both worlds–I get to do work that is both scientifically engaging and valuable for conservation. Conservation and management of our aquatic resources are really important to me, and I want to make sure that whatever I do for work is supporting those resources.

  • Matt Finzel

    Matt Finzel, INHS graduate student researcher

    Oct 25, 2022 2:00 pm

    At 4 or 5 years old, INHS grad student Matt Finzel remembers exploring the great outdoors, letting curiosity be his guide! Now he's using large datasets from INHS to search for indicator plant species of high quality wetlands in Illinois.

  • Rohini Vembar

    Rohini Vembar, INHS graduate student researcher

    Oct 25, 2022 2:00 pm

    INHS graduate student Rohini Vembar grew up surrounded by science, and—even as an elementary school student—knew she wanted to go into some STEM field.

  • Manisha Pant

    Manisha Pant, macroinvertebrates coordinator

    Feb 3, 2023 9:15 am

    Manisha Pant recently joined the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) as a macroinvertebrates coordinator with the Illinois River Biological Station (IRBS)’s long-term resource monitoring (LTRM) program. Manisha is looking forward to once again sampling and studying freshwater macroinvertebrates, and has always been interested in STEM fields since she was a kid. If you wonder if she's grossed out by looking at bugs all the time – her answer, emphatically, “No! Bugs are cool!” 

  • Janice Enos

    Janice Enos, avian biologist

    Feb 7, 2023 9:30 am

    Janice Enos, an avian biologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS). Her research broadly focuses on how social interactions influence nesting ecology and habitat selection in songbirds. Janice has been an animal lover and interested in science for as long as she can remember, crediting David Attenborough and PBS documentaries like “NOVA” and “Nature” for sparking her interest in science, and the Massachusetts Audubon Society for convincing her to become an ornithologist!

  • Anna Frailey

    Anna Frailey, field scientist/forest ecologist

    Mar 1, 2023 9:00 am

    We're pleased to welcome Anna Frailey to the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) as a field scientist/forest ecologist! Anna brings her passion for land management to this role, and we look forward to having her on our team!

  • scientist smiling and holding up a freshwater mussel

    Hugo Ruellan, aquatic ecologist

    Mar 14, 2023 2:00 pm
  • Abby Pagels in the field

    Abby Pagels, acoustic coordinator for the Illinois Bat Conservation Program

    Mar 14, 2023 2:00 pm
  • Katrina Cotten

    Katrina Cotten, terrestrial ecologist

    May 15, 2023 10:30 am

    Katrina Cotten recently joined INHS as a terrestrial ecologist. She received her B.Sc. in Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. During her undergrad and after graduation, she worked in the Human-Wildlife Interactions Lab, where she was first introduced to working with bats. She completed a summer research project examining predation risks at natural versus artificial roosts in southern Indiana. She also contributed to a literature review examining the temperature buffering capacity of tree microhabitats at a global scale.

  • Amber Schmidt

    Amber Schmidt: Grad Student and Illinois Indiana Sea Grant Scholar

    Dec 6, 2023 9:45 am

  • Jordan Hartman, postdoctoral researcher

    Jan 29, 2024 10:45 am

    Jordan Hartman joined INHS and the Collaborative Conservation Genomics Laboratory on January 1, 2024, as a Postdoctoral Researcher with Dr. Mark Davis. She recently completed her Ph. D. at the University of Illinois under Dr. Eric Larson where she studied the process of the invasion of Eastern Banded Killifish in Illinois using different and genomic techniques. Today, she can found in the genomics laboratory where she will be researching little brown bats across the United States.

  • Shaley Valentine, assistant research scientist

    Feb 22, 2024 9:00 am

    Shaley Valentine recently joined Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) as an Assistant Research Scientist at the Illinois River Biological Station! Prior to joining INHS, Shaley completed a PhD at Southern Illinois University. We sat down with Shaley to learn more about them, what they’re passionate about, and hear any advice they have for future scientists.

  • Woman with a hat on holding a large black and yellow turtle.

    Claire Dietrich, field ecologist

    Feb 29, 2024 2:00 pm

    Claire Dietrich recently joined the PACE Lab as a field ecologist.

  • Jameson Mori, 2024 PRI Early Career Investigator Award recipient

    Jun 5, 2024 7:45 am

    Jameson Mori, assistant research scientist at the Illinois Natural History Survey’s Wildlife Epidemiological Lab, has been named the recipient of the 2024 Early Career Investigator Award by the Prairie Research Institute (PRI) for their outstanding contributions to environmental science and interdisciplinary research.

  • Dr. Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, 2024 Distinguished Research Scientist Award recipient

    Jun 5, 2024 1:15 pm

    Dr. Nohra Mateus-Pinilla has been selected as the recipient of the 2024 Distinguished Research Scientist Award by the Prairie Research Institute. This prestigious recognition is bestowed upon individuals whose exceptional contributions to their field of research, environment, and society stand out as exemplary. Dr. Mateus-Pinilla, the director of the Wildlife Veterinary Epidemiology Laboratory at the Illinois Natural History Survey.

  • A woman wearing a hat and holding a toad.

    Hope Dermott, visiting scientific specialist

    Jun 27, 2024 8:00 am

    Hope Dermott joined INHS in the Wetland Science Program on May 20th as a Visiting Scientific Specialist in Wetland Science. She is currently working on her Master's degree in soil science at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.