blog posts

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  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.

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  Kelsey Low, disease ecology research assistant

  Oct 22, 2019 12:45 pm
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  Katie Spaulding, GIS Specialist

  Aug 9, 2024 10:45 am

  We spoke with Katie Spaulding, a recent graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the newest visiting scientific specialist of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) at the Illinois State Geological Survey. Katie shared her journey from her undergraduate career to her current role at ISGS, where she combines her passion for the environment with advanced mapping technologies. 

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  Margaret Golden, hourly research assistant

  Aug 10, 2021 8:00 am
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  Eric Schauber: Illinois Natural History Survey director

  May 30, 2018 11:15 am
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  Riley Balikian, geophysicist and hydrogeologist

  Apr 14, 2021 8:00 am
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  Rachel Prostko, water quality technician

  Dec 3, 2024 7:00 am

  Meet Rachel Prostko, a water quality technician at the Illinois Natural History Survey. Rachel brings her passion for lab and fieldwork to PRI, where she monitors water quality and studies zooplankton communities in the Mississippi watershed.

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  Trent Ford, Illinois State Climatologist

  Apr 12, 2022 8:00 am

  Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford is a recipient of the Prairie Research Institute’s 2022 Early Career Investigator Award. Ford joined the Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) in 2019 as the State Climatologist following recently retired Jim Angel. In that short period of time, he has developed an active research program funded through external programs, while taking on the daunting task of re-visualizing and expanding the State Climatologist program.

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  Walton R. Kelly, 2024 Research Scientist Career Achievement Award recipient

  Jun 5, 2024 2:00 pm

  Walton R. Kelly is the recipient of the Prairie Research Institute’s 2024 Research Scientist Career Achievement Award, which recognizes the achievements of a PRI scientist whose fundamental discoveries, new theories, or insights have had a significant impact over the course of their career.

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  Josh Smith, economic geologist and affiliate researcher

  Dec 17, 2024 7:00 am

  Josh Smith is a research specialist with the University of Illinois' Department of Earth Science & Environmental Change and a research affiliate with the Critical Minerals group at the Illinois State Geological Survey.

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  Jake Vile, undergraduate researcher

  Jul 26, 2024 2:00 pm

  Jake Vile, a recent graduate from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in Atmospheric Sciences recently joined the Illinois State Water Survey, a division of the Prairie Research Institute. Jake's passion for weather began at a young age, and he plans to further his studies with a M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences at the University at Albany this fall. At PRI, he contributes to the MITTEN-CI project, focusing on collecting and analyzing meteorological data. Jake's dedication and enthusiasm, combined with his extensive global experience, make him a valuable asset to our team. We sat down with Jake to learn more about his experience and plans for the future.

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  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!” 

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  Brenda Molano-Flores: Plant Ecologist

  Mar 24, 2017 12:45 pm
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  Dana Brown, vector biologist

  Jul 21, 2022 3:30 pm

  Dana Brown recently joined the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) as a vector biologist. Prior to joining INHS, Dana spent four years assisting with microbiological research in laboratories focused on virology, immunology, and cancer biology.

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  Justin Remmers, postdoctoral researcher

  Mar 7, 2024 2:15 pm

  Justin Remmers recently joined INHS as a Postdoctoral Researcher.

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  Susan Post: Entomologist

  Mar 17, 2017 12:45 pm
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  Sarah Manderbach, water safety researcher

  Oct 29, 2024 8:00 am

  Sarah Manderbach is a water safety researcher at the Illinois State Water Survey, where she conducts vital research on private wells. At PRI, Sarah is researching testing for Legionella in private wells in Illinois. 

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  Sara Villazan Perez-Girones, visiting scientific specialist

  Feb 13, 2024 8:45 am
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  Sarah Douglass: Mussel Field Biologist

  May 2, 2017 4:15 pm
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  Lee Green, chemist

  Aug 3, 2022 8:00 am

  Lee Green is a chemist in the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center’s Applied Research on Industrial and Environmental Systems (ARIES) group. She studies persistent contaminants, specializing in microplastics and PFAS. Scientists are just beginning to discover the impacts that these contaminants have on the human body and the environment.

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  Anne Krippenstapel, field scientist

  Aug 8, 2022 8:00 am

  Anne Krippenstapel recently joined the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) as a field scientist. She earned her bachelor's degree in forestry from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and worked as a forestry tech, running a chainsaw, treating invasive plants, and doing timber stand improvement.

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  Payton Ohler, summer research intern

  Aug 14, 2024 1:30 pm

  Payton Ohler recently completed her summer internship working with Sherilyn Williams-Stroud at the Illinois State Geological Survey. As a participant in the Graduate College’s Summer Research Opportunities Program, she focused on the social and technological implications of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects.

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  Undergraduate Research Symposium

  Apr 22, 2022 11:15 am

  Congratulations to all of the undergraduate students presenting at the Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 28 and the PRI scientists who mentored them! 

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  Ahmani Browne, 2022 PRI SROP intern

  Jul 26, 2022 8:00 am

  Ahmani Browne, a senior studying marine biology at Mitchell College, is working with Liang Chen, a research climatologist at the Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS), studying the risks of winter severity in the Midwest due to climate change. Browne and Chen are using state-of-the-art climate models to quantify past and future winter storms, and investigate strong-wind and heavy snowfall events using climate simulations. Browne recently answered some questions about his internship experience.

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  Hugo Ruellan, aquatic ecologist

  Mar 14, 2023 2:00 pm
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  Patrick Green, Central Illinois Field Station (CIFS) coordinator

  Mar 21, 2022 8:00 am

  If there's construction planned in your area, one of the first people you may see on the scene is Patrick Green, the Central Illinois Field Station coordinator at the Illinois State Archaeological Survey (ISAS). As an Illinois native, Patrick knows the Illinois landscape quite well and is a wealth of knowledge about the history and archaeological sites all around Illinois and the United States! He recently answered some questions about his work, career advice, and why you don't have to travel to Egypt or the Yucatan (unless you want to!) to learn about fascinating ancient history – it's all around you!

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  Natalia Maass, endangered species specialist

  Sep 1, 2021 8:00 am

  Meet Natalia Maass, an endangered species specialist with the Illinois Natural History Survey. While Maass continues to tackle challenging programming languages, she stresses that having an advanced degree isn't a qualifier for being a “real” scientist. People can do meaningful work in science as citizen scientists, too.

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  Abby Pagels, acoustic coordinator for the Illinois Bat Conservation Program

  Mar 14, 2023 2:00 pm
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  Jim Lamer: large river ecologist

  Mar 25, 2019 2:30 pm
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  Steve Wilson, groundwater hydrologist

  Apr 14, 2022 8:00 am

  The 2022 Research Scientist’s Career Achievement Award goes to Steve Wilson. Steve began his career at the Water Survey more than 30 years ago, as an undergraduate student hourly. Now as a groundwater hydrologist, Steve leads two programs that have significant nationwide impact on the safety of drinking water: The Private Well Class, which provides self-paced online training for private well owners and professionals who support them, and WaterOperator.org, a user-friendly online resource hub for water and wastewater operators that is geared towards supporting small systems.

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  Stefan Ilic, visiting scientific specialist

  Sep 3, 2024 7:00 am

  We sat down with Stefan Ilic, a new visiting scientific specialist on the GIS team at the Illinois State Geological Survey. In this interview, Stefan shares insights into his journey to becoming a GIS specialist, his passion for geography and cartography, and the tools he relies on for his work.

   

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  Emmarie Alexander, undergraduate researcher

  Apr 19, 2021 8:00 am
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  Mike DeYoung, 2024 Outstanding New Support Staff Award recipient

  Jun 5, 2024 11:30 am

  Project Manager Mike DeYoung is the recipient of the Prairie Research Institute’s 2024 Outstanding New Support Staff Award, which recognizes non-scientific support staff who have shown exceptional performance and outstanding service in their work and are making an impact on PRI.

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  Sara Wilson, INHS graduate student

  Oct 26, 2020 8:00 am
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  Reilly Durham, visiting scientific specialist

  Feb 26, 2024 10:00 am

  Introducing Reilly Durham, who recently joined the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) at the Prairie Research Institute. Their role focuses on algal-bacterial bioaugmentation, aiming to revolutionize wastewater treatment and biofuel production.

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  Srirupa Ganguly: Process Development Engineer

  Mar 27, 2017 2:15 pm
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  David Zaya, plant ecologist

  Jun 11, 2020 4:30 pm
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  Allan E. Jones, hydrologist

  Apr 27, 2023 3:15 pm

  Allan E. Jones, a recently promoted assistant research scientist in hydrology, has received the Prairie Research Institute (PRI) 2023 Early Career Investigator Award for his excellence in research and leadership and his impact on the development of the groundwater flow model at the Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS).

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  Fatima Tuz Zafrin Tuli, geoscience data R&D scientist

  Nov 7, 2024 7:30 am

  Meet Fatima Tuz Zafrin Tuli, who goes by Tuli, is a geoscience data R&D scientist with the Illinois State Geological Survey. Her work at ISGS focuses on managing and advancing the use of scientific data—particularly GIS data—in research. 

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  Sam Schaick, large river fisheries ecologist

  May 31, 2019 9:15 am
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  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.

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  Kylee Noel, INHS graduate student

  Oct 24, 2019 9:00 am
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  Tara Beveroth: Ornithologist

  Jun 14, 2017 4:00 pm
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  Shari Effert-Fanta, assistant director for facilities and safety

  Apr 15, 2022 8:00 am

  Shari Effert-Fanta, PRI’s assistant director for facilities & safety, is the recipient of the 2022 Distinguished Support Staff Award! Effert-Fanta oversees PRI’s many facilities, both on campus and across the state, as well as the safety of PRI staff and students as they work in the field and in the lab; her work impacts everyone at PRI.

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  Illinois River Biological Station marks 50th anniversary

  Aug 12, 2022 8:30 am

  On July 23, the Illinois Natural History Survey's Illinois River Biological Station (IRBS) celebrated its 50th anniversary with a reunion at Riverfront Park in Havana, Illinois. IRBS has grown to a staff of more than 50 people, including PhD. scientists, post-doctoral research associates, large river ecologists, aquatic field technicians, and many graduate students. More than 300 scientists have been part of IRBS since its founding in 1972. 

   

   

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  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. 

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  Sarah Gaulke, INHS graduate student

  Oct 26, 2020 8:00 am
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  Seth Allgeier, curation specialist

  Sep 10, 2024 2:15 pm

  Seth Allgeier recently joined the Illinois State Archaeological Survey as a curation specialist. At PRI, Seth is leveraging his fieldwork experience to assess, organize, and digitize Illinois Department of Transportation site documents

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  Hugo Ruellan, INHS graduate student

  Oct 22, 2019 9:00 am
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  Toby Holda, large river fisheries ecologist

  May 2, 2022 8:00 am

  Toby Holda joined INHS on April 25th as a large river fisheries ecologist. Holda worked at INHS during his undergraduate career and looks forward to sampling fish in the field, especially the long toothy fishes (gars, bowfin, etc.). He's also looking forward to continuing working with the folks at the Illinois River Biological Station and to the opportunity to continue developing his research skills.