Graduate Students

My name is Grace (they/she), and I will be working under the guidance of Dr. Charlotte Milling. During my time at EWU, I will be researching community trophic interactions in the Prairie Potholes Region of Manitoba using stable isotope analysis, centered around the waterfowl nesting season. My research can be narrowed down to a seemingly simple question: who is eating duck eggs? The Prairie Potholes is arguably one of the most important bird nurseries on our planet, especially for migratory waterfowl. I am hoping that through my research, I can help guide management decisions in the region to better protect ducks, and the region at large. Outside of research, I am also a member of the Spokane Audubon Society, and an environmental educator. My driving mission in life is to protect the earth through meaningful research, and to make science and the outdoors accessible to all.

Here at EWU, I am examining the bone morphology, muscle attachment points, and biomechanics of Antarcticavis capelambensis to figure out what lifestyle it would have lived. Was it a foot-propelled diver? Was it flying? Was it mostly on the ground? I will be comparing this bird to both other fossil birds and extant relatives to help figure this out. My past research includes examining a grebe-like tarsometatarsus from the late Cretaceous, examining a juvenile Bottosaurus harlani left dentary from the late Cretaceous, describing an ankylosaur tail club from Montana, and finding the pathology that affected a sea turtle from the late Cretaceous. I have also done field work in Wyoming as an intern for the Wyoming Dinosaur Center, where I was working in the Morrison Formation. I did field work in Montana where I was working in the Hell Creek Formation. Also, I have done extensive field work in New Jersey where I worked in the Hornerstown Formation.

To contribute to the Inland Pacific Northwest Prairie Restoration Project on the EWU campus, I’m studying the effect of compost tea on soil microorganism community composition and native plant establishment.

I am a multifaceted researcher, educator, and science illustrator communicating the relationship humans have with the environment to the public. My unique experience curating avenues of open science in freshwater, marine, and tropical ecology in the Western United States and Costa Rica, has taught me valuable leadership skills I continue to utilize in my higher education and career at Eastern. My thesis will be investigating host-pathogen-microbiome dynamics in tropical lowlands anuran populations. Lethal panzootic pathogens (e.g. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and ranavirus) and bacterial skin microbes have a bidirectional relationship to their richness and diversity. Understanding the implications of co-infection in the tropics will provide insight to disease and microbial ecology to preserve this valuable taxon. When I am not in the lab or field, I am illustrating as HEKpaintings, a small business dedicated to conservation and environmental education.

I am performing population genetic analyses on the plants of the Palouse Prairie, investigating the relationship between low genetic diversity and reduced viability and germination rates. My research focuses on how inbreeding, driven by fragmented habitats, affects seed germination traits. The goal is to understand how these factors impact prairie ecosystems, as well as to deepen our knowledge of plant genetic variation and its influence on seed development.

Multiple myeloma is a blood cancer of terminally differentiated B lymphocytes, also known as plasma cells. Multiple myeloma plasma cells aggregate in the bone marrow where they overstimulate the activity of osteoclasts which are cells responsible for the degradation of mineralized bone. For individuals with multiple myeloma, heightened activity of osteoclasts leads to the increased prevalence of bone pain, fragility fractures and renal dysfunction. Using molecular techniques such as RT-PCR, fluorescent microscopy, and viral modulation of gene expression, my research focuses on the cell signaling pathways that drive bone pathology in the multiple myeloma disease process. Most notably, I have been investigating the role of the Notch signaling pathway.

I am currently collaborating with Dr. Judd Case to describe fossil specimens of Macropodidae (the kangaroo family) from specific biostratigraphic zones dating approximately from the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene, found in the Etadunna Formation of South Australia. My research focuses on the major fossil clades of Macropodidae, comparing them with extant taxa in terms of kangaroo clades and taxonomy, as well as tooth morphology across the four major clades. I aim to investigate how this morphology relates to dietary habits among these species, and I will also study hindlimb morphology to understand its implications for different modes of hopping within the family.

As a first-year graduate student, I hold an undergraduate degree in Geology from Central Washington University. During my studies, I undertook undergraduate research focused on the taxonomy of a genus of Oreodonts known as Brachycrus, working alongside a local paleontologist to examine various specimens and determine whether they represent distinct species.

My lifelong passion for dinosaurs drives my dedication to studying paleontology and understanding the ancient world. With a strong foundation in geology and an emerging background in biology, I aspire to pursue a Ph.D. and build a career as a paleontologist.

My research focuses on plant ecology, specifically the role of wild bees in pollinating native plants across diverse habitats. I will be collecting wild bees from the region and analyzing the percentage of pollen they carry from various floral hosts. Native plants rely on pollinators like bees for effective reproduction, as these pollinators facilitate genetic transfer by moving pollen between flowers, which enhances genetic diversity and resilience. My goal is to address the questions: Do non-native plants compete with native species for pollination, and are there any native species particularly vulnerable to this competition? This research aims to deepen our understanding of bee and plant interactions to aid in restoration efforts and inform conservation strategies.

I am studying the sulfur reducing pathway of Desulfovibrio piger, a human gut bacterium that has been associated with a range of inflammatory diseases due to its production of the pro-inflammatory metabolite, hydrogen sulfide (H₂S). My project includes the use of molecular microbiology techniques to elucidate the function of key genes thought to be involved in regulating H₂S production within this opportunistic pathobiont. I hope to discover which genes are essential for this process to aid in the production of H₂S negative mutants that will be used in murine studies on multiple sclerosis and obesity by our collaborators at the University of Iowa.