Graduate Student Profiles

Office Location: STEPS 580

Area of Specialization: Temperate plant community ecology

Miller is a PhD candidate in the Earth and Environmental Sciences department studying temperate forest ecology. They earned their BS in Environmental Science from Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA in 2019 and later earned their MS in Marine and Atmospheric Science from Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, NY in 2023. Their dissertation research aims to understand how invasion by nonnative plants changes the community assembly processes of native plants in temperate forests. With a broad and interdisciplinary background, their interests range across scales and systems to incorporate environmental, climatic, and anthropogenic impacts on plant communities. Miller is passionate about science communication and public outreach, having spent a few years as a park ranger and environmental educator before returning to graduate school. Beyond the lab and field, you can find them playing ultimate frisbee.

Office Location: ST 220

Office Location: ST 240

Area of Specialization: Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vent Geochemistry, Biogeochemistry, Oceanography

Jessica graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.S. in Marine Science in 2021. She became interested in hydrothermal vents during her undergrad while doing research using δ¹³C values of lipid biomarkers extracted from a carbonate hydrothermal chimney to determine if the microbes inhabiting different thermochemical gradients utilized distinct carbon sources. Before beginning graduate school at Lehigh, Jessica spent a year working at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution as a lab manager doing hydrothermal organic geochemistry. Her current research focuses on understanding both geochemical and biogeochemical interactions at various hydrothermal vent fields across the Pacific Ocean. She has extensive oceanographic fieldwork experience, participating in three month-long research cruises since she arrived at Lehigh. In her free time, Jessica enjoys tending to her garden plot in the Lehigh Community Garden, baking, reading, game nights, and any and all ocean-related activities.

Office Location: ST 240

Office Location: ST 140

Area of Specialization: Paleoecology, paleoclimate

Alexis earned her B.S. in Biology from Florida Gulf Coast University in 2019, with a minor in geology. She has a lifelong interest in paleontology, which was broadened during an undergraduate paleoclimatology course where she collected mangrove peat cores to identify hurricane deposits. In her current research, Alexis studies Arctic peat cores to learn about past environmental conditions, focusing on the response of Sphagnum moss and testate amoebae to the past 200 years of rapid anthropogenic global warming. By incorporating techniques on every scale from mass spectrometry of carbon isotopes, to identifying microbes and plant fragments under the microscope, and even peat accumulation modeling, she can build a comprehensive view of what is happening in this ecosystem during such drastic change. While she doesn’t know exactly what’s next after graduate school, she would love to continue doing anything related to wetlands, whether that’s collecting data on the plants, water, or wildlife as a scientist, working for a regulatory agency, helping to map and manage wetlands for restoration and conservation, or teaching at a university. In her free time, Alexis enjoys an eclectic lineup of hobbies, including camping, paddleboarding, adventure RPG video games, yoga, brain-teaser puzzles and trivia.

Office Location: 130

Office Location: 580

Julia is a PhD Student in the Earth and Environmental Sciences department at Lehigh University. She earned a B.S. in Biology with a minor in Environmental Science at Wake Forest University. Her previous studies involved comparing microbial communities in bogs and building a water monitoring station. Julia is interested in studying how different environments impact the composition of microbial biofilms on microplastics. In her free time, she enjoys soil painting, reading, and going on hikes.

Office Location: ST 240

Bangran will be comparing the constant flux proxy — extraterrestrial 3He  — with other geochemical proxies in ocean floor sediments to reconstruct past sediment mass accumulation rates. Bangran is excited about this project because it spans periods when Earth's climate was warmer or colder than the present, which gives insights into how the Earth's climate system may evolve in the future.