MEES IN THE NEWS

april 2026 - national earth month

NEWS ARCHIVE

congratulations to our 2026 NSF Graduate Research Science Fellowship & 2026 cmns staff award recipients!!

2026 NSF GRFP AWARD RECIPIENTS 2026 CMNS ANNUAL AWARD RECIPIENTS

April 27, 2026 - The MEES Graduate Program warmly congratulates Pauline Lawrence (M.S., ECOL SYS), Advisor: Ryan Woodland, and Aidan Hand a new incoming Fall 26 MEES doctoral student, Advisor; Emily Cohen, on being the recipients of the highly competitive and prestigious National Science Fellowship (NSF) Graduate Research Science Fellowship (GRFP) which is awarded to outstanding graduate students pursuing full-time research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, who demonstrate the potential to make significant contributions in STEM. Out of the 14,000 applications submitted this year, our exceptional students were among the less than 20% selected!

The College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences also awarded our very own Dr. Timothy Canty, who serves not only as the Graduate Program Director for the MEES Program, but also as Associate Professor in the Department of Atmospheric & Oceanic Science the 2026 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Dr. Canty who joined the College Park faculty in 2007, helped launch AOSC’s undergraduate program and served as its director for over a decade. He also oversees the mandatory research component of the AOSC undergraduate program and serves as director for the department’s Master of Professional Studies program. Students note his passion for weather and climate, his willingness to go above and beyond to make sure students understand the content, and his famous class experiments being known for being “extremely hilarious and engaging”. Several also stated that taking his class convinced them to switch majors to AOSC and that he is always available during office hours for any questions. The MEES Graduate Program is so very proud of Dr. Canty whose passion for education, research, discovery and hard work are being rewarded!

The MEES Graduate Program warmly congratulates Valerie Bonhomme, for being selected to receive the 2026 CMNS Staff-NonExempt award! Valerie, a Terp alum, who joined the MEES Graduate Program staff in 2021, serves as the Program Administrative Specialist, whose duties expanded to the AOSC graduate program in 2022, overseeing the programs day to day operations in: admissions, graduation clearances, commencement, new faculty appointments and also serves on the MEES and AOSC tech teams managing email ListServ subscriptions, website content, including the online directory profiles and the program’s monthly news page. Valerie is also currently serving as AOSC’s staff DEI representative in the Graduate School’s Recruitment Team and an active member in the MEES Program committee member.

The MEES Program is proud of all our exceptional and passionate graduate students, faculty and staff, that make up this diverse and vibrant community!

MEES RESEARCH CENTER

ocean dynamics & the climate state: Investigating the southern ocean’s role in the Global Carbon Budget

dr. madeleine youngs (UMCP)

Dr. Madeleine Youngs is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science (AOSC) at the University of Maryland, College Park. Dr. Youngs, who was recently approved and appointed as a member of the MEES Earth & Ocean Graduate Faculty, research is focused on the question: How does ocean dynamics influence the climate state? In the near term, Dr. Young’s research group plans to investigate the role of turbulence on setting the mean state of the Southern Ocean through multiple angles including: utilizing available observations, process and biogeochemical modeling, using and developing basin- and ocean-scale models, and leveraging techniques from dynamical systems science, data science, and atmospheric science.  Prior to joining the AOSC faculty at College Park, as a post doctoral fellow at UCLA’s Dynamical Oceanography Group,  Young’s interest in large-scale geophysical fluid dynamics of the ocean and climate have expanded to include dynamical systems techniques for geophysical systems and applied these to the atmosphere, specifically considering how oceanic and atmospheric storm tracks, regions of enhanced large-scale turbulence, respond to and feed back on Earth's climate,   Dr. Young recalls a two and a half month oceanographic research trip  which was extended in order to come to the aid of a few fellow scientists who were stranded due to the coronavirus pandemic.  In an MIT article about the trip, Dr. Youngs noted the opportunity to “see more of the Antarctic” and the confining experience of working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week on board the research vessel was “actually good preparation for quarantining when back home!” (article).  Youngs had the opportunity to participate in the Southern Ocean Carbon and Climate Observations and Modeling project where she deployed five new floats into the icy waters of the Amundsen Sea to monitor it’s salinity, depth, temperature, pH, carbon and oxygen, spatially and over time. Scientists aim to use this data to gain a greater understanding of the Southern Ocean’s role in the global carbon budget. Young credits her advisor Dr. Glenn Flierl, professor and supervisor based at MIT in helping her connect her research into the Southern Ocean to atmospheric dynamics.  Dr. Youngs brings extensive teaching experience having taught both undergraduate and graduate physical oceanography courses at UCLA and MIT and aims to not only advise MEES graduate students, participate in MEES program committees, but also instruct MEES courses on ocean biophysical interactions.     Dr. Youngs joined the AOSC faculty in January 2025 and was appointed to the MEES Faculty later that year in October.  Dr. Youngs is the current instructor for both AOSC’s atmospheric & oceanic dynamics graduate core (required) course (AOSC 610) and an undergraduate climate data science course (AOSC445).   Dr. Youngs recently received UMD’s MPower Junior TTK Track Award (2026) which is aimed at supporting and sustaining essential research capabilities and investing in the next generation of scholars.  For more information on Dr. Youngs, please click here.boratory in Frostburg, here.

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megapools & coastal marshes: a ecosystem restoration analysis

katherine stahl (M.S ‘23)

Katherine Stahl (‘23, M.S.) recently began her new role at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources as a Restoration Finance Coordinator.  In this role, Katherine is supporting grant programs within the Watershed and Climate Services unit, with a focus on advancing Chesapeake Bay and Coastal Bays restoration.  Advised by Dr. Andrew Baldwin, Katherine, or Katie to her friends and family, earned her Master’s degree in MEES in Fall 2023 from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP).  Her thesis research focused on coastal marshes altered by large water-filled areas called “megapools”, drainage ditches where plants have died off.  This loss of marsh vegetation can not only reduce habitat for wildlife, weaken protection from storms, but limit other benefits these ecosystems can provide.  However, scientists still don’t fully understand how these megapools form, which makes it harder to restore damaged marshes. Katherine’s thesis compared environmental conditions in megapools at different stages of development and at different elevations within them and tested two restoration approaches. Prior to joining the MEES graduate program,  this Pennsylvania native recalls growing up around the local Conestoga river, a 60-mile tributary of the Susquehanna river viewing the agricultural watershed, walking the river water trails, and exploring the covered bridges.   Katie notes experiencing the challenges and issues the local farming community faced with vivid memories of three evacuation events due to severe flooding, invasive species and rising costs.  These experiences Katie attributes to instilling a lifelong love of nature and people; a passion to preserve and restore both the ecosystems and the communities that depend on the resources.  Katie’s desire to explore ecology and evolution, led her to the College of William and Mary (W&M) as a double undergraduate major in Biology and Environmental Science, respectively.  With scholarships from the Jimmy Rane Foundation, community organizations, and internal college funds as well as her continuous employment throughout her undergraduate career at W&M, Katie worked with Associate Professors  Dr. Joshua Puzey and Dr. Harmony Dalgleish; on a project studying Asclepias syriaca, a common milkweed vital to the monarch butterfly’s life cycle, but researchers have noted devastating declines in both species. The goal of this project was to better understand why milkweed plants are declining, focusing on how their ability to reproduce by cloning themselves might affect how they grow and look. The results showed that differences in the environment have a bigger effect on how plants look and grow than their genetics do, meaning they can adapt to changing conditions. The study also found that most populations rely less on cloning and are more genetically diverse than scientists had previously believed, resulting in a co-authorship on a paper.  Following earning her bachelor’s in both Biology and Environmental Science from W&M in Spring 2019, Katie went on to work as a Technician at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Chesapeake Bay Field Office (USFWS) in Annapolis, MD in the Habitat Restoration Division where she designed and implemented restoration projects in various ecosystems for the Partners for Fish and Wildlife program. Some of the most notable projects Katie worked on include installing pollinator meadows, wetland plantings, tree plantings, riparian buffers, and installing educational nature spaces on both private and county land. Katie also assisted with outreach events and expanded the capacity of annual biological monitoring for threatened, endangered, and at-risk species like Black Rail and Brook Floater.  Katie matriculated into the MEES Master’s program in Fall 2021, and was the recipient of an award  for nearly every year in the program: Dean’s Fellowship (2021, 2022), MEES Colloquium 3M  Lightning Talk (2022), and  the ENST Scholar award (2023).  Under the advisement of Dr. Andrew Baldwin, Katie’s master’s thesis research focused on comparing the environmental conditions in megapools at different stages of development (fully formed, partially formed, and areas where megapools have not formed) as well as at different elevations within them (high, medium, and low spots). To help address how megapool’s form and plant dieback, the research tested two restoration approaches studying how well newly planted vegetation survives and grows under different conditions.  Overall, the findings showed strong links between the stage of megapool formation and factors like elevation, soil chemistry, plant health, biomass production, and carbon storage.  Following graduating with her MEES Master’s in Fall 2023, Katie hopes that these baseline results support a close relationship between pool stages of formation, carbon storage, elevation, vegetation health, biomass production, and sulfide levels.  Katie joined the Maryland Department of Natural Resources in August 2025 as a Restoration Finance Coordinator aiming to continue supporting impactful on-the-ground restoration efforts and collaborate alongside many incredible partners working to protect and restore the planet’s natural resources. For more information on Katie, please click here.

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MEES RESEARCH CENTER

quantifying trophic webs in the gulf: a look at sea trout, red drum & atlantic croaker

wyatt palenchar (‘24, ECOL SYS)

Wyatt Palenchar (‘24, ECOL SYS) is a second year Ecological Systems Foundation Master’s student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES).  Advised by Dr. Justine Whitaker, Wyatt’s thesis research focuses on using molecular tools to examine the diets of three different Sciaenidae, a species of ray-finned fishes commonly called drums or croakers off the coast of Louisiana. Initially focused on Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus), Wyatt added the Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) and Atlantic Croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) to the study due to their economic and ecological importance in the region.  Prior to joining the MEES graduate program, this Salisbury native recalls enjoying being on and around the water, and aimed to combine this passion with education and eventually work doing research for the state or federal government.   This led Wyatt to apply and enroll in the Environmental Science and Technology bachelor’s of science program at the University of Maryland College Park (UMCP).  While at College Park, Wyatt not only successfully navigated juggling a demanding course load and a research internship (USDA), but also actively participated in university student honor societies and social clubs based on education, service, research and advocacy.  Wyatt took part in service projects as a member in the only National Professional Honorary in Health Education society, Eta Sigma Gamma’s Accessible Prosthetics Initiative which focused on making prosthetics more readily accessible through an interdisciplinary approach.  Wyatt participated in the ORISE Internship Program at the USDA Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, where he worked with researchers to study sustainable farming methods.  Wyatt Palenchar graduated with a B.S. degree in Environmental Science from the University of Maryland in May 2024.  Wyatt started in the MEES program at UMES in September 2024 and joined NOAA’s Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center (LMRCSC) Fellowship program in January 2025.  Under the advisement of Dr. Justine Whitaker, his thesis is focused on using eDNA and metabarcoding to examine the diet of Speckled Trout in the Gulf of Mexico.  Following graduation, Wyatt plans to work for a federal or state agency in the fisheries field.

For more information on Wyatt, please click here.

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