Department of Applied Environmental Science
Department Highlights | December 9, 2022 | Issue 9
About the Highlights
The Department of Applied Environmental Science (AES) is home to 3 degree programs: Environmental Studies B.A. (ENSTU), Environmental Science, Technology and Policy B.S. (ESTP), and Environmental Science M.S. (ENSCI). In an effort to stay connected, we created a bi-semester highlights series to keep all AES students, staff, and faculty informed of current AES news & events. If you need to get in touch with the AES office, please feel free to email us at aes_office@csumb.edu.
Faculty Highlight
Fred Watson, Professor

Dr. Fred Watson, Professor in the Department of Applied Environmental Science, has been a valued part of the CSUMB Community since 1998. He’s been an advisor to many graduate and undergraduate students and runs the Watson Lab. When not advising or teaching students, he's conducting research, exploring the great outdoors, and publishing papers, such as this one about wildebeest migration in Africa.

We recently touched base with Fred to learn more about his vast career and what led him to CSUMB.
Alumni
Jason Mansour
Tony Perry III
Theresa Smith (nee Madsen)
Earth Systems Science and Policy (now Environmental Science, Technology, and Policy)

Captain Jason Mansour, an ESSP (Earth Systems Science and Policy, now known as Environmental Science, Technology, and Policy) alumnus works for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps as a hurricane chaser! Mansour joined the NOAA Corps in May 2003, shortly after graduating from CSUMB.

Fellow ESSP alumni Tony Perry III and Theresa Smith (nee Madsen) also joined the NOAA Corps shortly after their graduation from CSUMB.

Perry III joined the NOAA Corps in 2004 and now works as the Associate Director of a NOAA meteorology-oceanography lab in Miami.

Smith joined the NOAA Corps in 2011. Currently, she works as a benthic mapping specialist and is stationed in Seattle, Washington.
Campus Resource
Financial Aid

The Financial Aid Office is there to help students with applying for scholarships, grants, and other types of financial aid. The Financial Aid Office provides the following services:
  • In-person counseling
  • Drop-in counseling
  • Exit loan workshops
  • Financial literacy workshops

There are many internal scholarships that are available to AES students. In addition, the 2023-2024 CSUMB General Scholarship Application is now open! The application deadline is February 17, 2023
Undergraduate Student Highlight
Olivia Equinoa, ENSTU

Olivia Equinoa, a current Environmental Studies major, is heavily involved in both the campus community and the AES Department. In Spring 2022, she won the CSUMB Library Ethnic Studies Research Paper Award for her paper "Decolonization in Higher Environmental Education." She also attends each AES Field Adventure, which occur on Saturdays throughout the semester

She is a science writing tutor for the Cooperative Learning Center, where she helps science students with research/citations, and helps students feel more confident in their writing.

We recently touched base with Olivia to learn more about her campus involvement and what she enjoys about being a student at CSUMB.









Graduate Students Highlight
Bryan Van Orman, ENSCI
Connie Machuca, ENSCI
Emma Debasitis, ENSCI
Shawn Melendy, ENSCI


Bryan Van Orman, a current Environmental Science master’s thesis student, recently defended his thesis research “DNA Barcoding for Diet and Intestinal Microbiota of Juvenile Rainbow Trout/Steelhead on the California Coast” in front of his committee and a public audience on Wednesday, November 2, 2022.

Connie Machuca, a current Environmental Science master’s thesis student, recently defended her thesis research “A Comparative Metagenomics Study on Bioreactor System in Salinas, CA, The Salinas River Valley, and The Tijuana River Valley” in front of her committee and a public audience on Wednesday, November 16, 2022.

Emma Debasitis, a current Environmental Science master’s thesis student, defended her thesis research "Estimating Natural Background Water Quality in California Rivers" in front of her committee and a public audience on Monday, December 5, 2022.

Shawn Melendy, a current Environmental Science master’s thesis student, defended his thesis research "Understanding Salmonid eDNA at the Fate Level" in front of his committee and a public audience on Thursday, December 8, 2022.

We recently reached out to all four students to learn more about their thesis research and overall experience as Environmental Science graduate students.
Message from the Department Chair
Dear AES Students,

We have reached the final stretch of the Fall semester!
Please join us for the AES Capstone Festival next Friday, Dec 16 from 9 am-Noon in Library 1188 (and Zoom). The Capstone Festival is a time to celebrate our students and learn about their culminating projects. Capstones are an important feature of our curriculum where all students engage in a project-based learning experience with community partners and organizations.  The Fall22 Capstone Festival features students from ENSTU 471, ENSTU 497, ENVS 402, ENVS 410, ENVS 436, ENVS 446, ENVS 497, ENVS 660, and BIO 448. I hope to see you there. Congratulations and best wishes to our Fall 2022 graduates in ENSTU, ESTP, and ENSCI!

Warmly,
Dr. Susan Alexander
Professor and Chair, Department of Applied Environmental Science
Department Updates
AES Fall 2022 Capstone Festival
Join us in celebrating the hard work of AES Capstone students!

The Department of Applied Environmental Science Fall 2022 Capstone Festival will be taking place on Friday, December 16, 2022 from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm (PST) in Tanimura & Antle Family Memorial Library, Room 1188 and over Zoom (for virtual attendees).

The following majors will be presenting during this session:
  • Environmental Science, Technology, & Policy (ESTP)
  • Environmental Studies (ENSTU)
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Department of Applied Environmental Science | https://csumb.edu/aes