original_bd7063e7-f739-4ff0-abc2-5b4ce1475491_PXL_20210409_142411282.jpg — North Carolina A&T University

My current research, with Dr. Sanjun Gu at North Carolina A&T University, explores profitability of different high tunnel plastic covers and different mulching types. Our current rotation system includes tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers in spring and summer, and collards, swiss chard, lettuce, bok choy, and kale in the fall and winter. Our research operates with the goal of providing recommendations for growers in the southeastern piedmont region for optimizing profitable high tunnel construction and use.

University of Maryland Extension (2017-2021)

For four years I was the Small Farms Agriculture Agent in Carroll County, Maryland.
Photo by Lena Kathleen McBean

University of Maryland (2012-2016)

At The University of Maryland I worked as Lab and Field Manager for Dr. Galen Dively studying insects in agricultural systems. During the spring and summer I led a crew of undergraduate technicians who prepared fields, planted and cultivated vegetables and field crops, and applied organic and conventional insecticides to measure their effects on dozens of pest and beneficial insect species. We also examined the efficacy of sustainable farming techniques on controlling pests, and conducted research on the evolution of insect resistance to Bt corn, and its effects on non-target species.

In autumn our research focused on studying the movement of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) in corn and soybean fields, and its distribution across the state of Maryland. We also worked on quantifying the damage caused by BMSB in soybeans which can result in Green Stem Syndrome.

In the winter we studied BMSB by maintaining a large colony which I used to study how diapause relates to survival and egg production, and to examine the relationship between BMSB and the mutualistic bacteria that live in its gut.

In 2016 I started my master's program at University of Maryland in the Department of Entomology. My thesis research focused on the effects of different winter cover crops and tillage practices on insect pest populations and weeds in agricultural systems. Managing weeds and insect pests is a large part of the expense of small farms, and my research was geared towards optimizing these sustainable practices from an economic perspective. I'm also interested in how habitat diversification in agricultural fields can affect natural predator populations by modifying trophic interactions between insect populations. This research took place at the Central Maryland Research and Education Center in Upper Marlboro, Maryland and the Western Maryland Research and Education Center in Keedysville, Maryland.

Virginia Institute of Marine Science (2009-2011)

At The Virginia Institute of Marine Science I worked first as a field technician under Dr. Stan Allen in the Aquaculture Genetics & Breeding Technology Center (ABC). The ABC uses a combination of selective breeding and genetic research to provide specialized brood stock of the Eastern oyster, *Crassostrea virginica* to industry.
In the fall of 2009 I began working for Dr. Jeffrey Shields, who studies parasitic diseases in crustaceans. My work focused on *Hematodinium* parasitic dinoflagellates that cause disease in Norway lobster, snow crab, Tanner crab, hermit crab, and American blue crab. Our field work aimed to examine the distribution of the disease in the blue crab population of the Chesapeake Bay, and our lab work focused on identifying the abiotic factors that contribute to disease risk, and studying the parasite's complicated life cycle.
In addition to working with *Hematodinium* I also aided Dr. Jessica Moss Small in her work on PaV1, a virus infecting spiny lobsters, and Dr. Hamish Small on an opportunistic ciliate parasite of several crab species.

University of North Carolina Asheville (2006-2009)

While getting my B.S. at the University of North Carolina Asheville (UNCA) I participated in the undergraduate research program under Dr. Mike Stuart, and was awarded a research grant to study the life cycle of a native trematode parasite, Metagonimoides oregonenis. Concurrently I worked with Dr. Tim Forrest to describe the mating call of Atlanticus testaceus, the protean shieldback katydid, and how it is affected by changing temperature.