How I became rooted in soil and wetland science
I am soil and wetland scientist living and studying in Raleigh, North Carolina. I grew up on a small family farm in northwest Iowa where I gained an appreciation for the great outdoors, agriculture, and the natural world. My interest in wetlands started as a teenager when I went on my first duck hunting adventure with my older brother. Since it was my first time I didn’t have any waders so I attempted to stay afloat while hunting in the middle of the wetland by walking on knocked-over cattails. This eventually lead to me getting stuck waste-deep in muck (highly decomposed organic material that accumulates in wetlands) with no waders on. This would bug some people, but I actually thought it was pretty cool. From then on I found wetlands incredibly interesting, so I approached college with the goal of creating a career around wetlands.
I entered the environmental science degree program at Iowa State University. There some incredibly enthusiastic professors, one in particular, showed me how interesting soils can be, so I enrolled in every soil science class that I could. I also noted how cool it would be to have their jobs – preaching the complexities of soil science, taking students on cool field trips, conducting research on topics that directly impact the environment and agricultural economy around me. A university professor became my dream job. I finished my bachelor of science in environmental science in 2008, afterwhich I entered the soil science program at NC State where my research is a blend of my two academic interests – soils and wetlands.
I work under Dr. Vepraskas researching phosphorus release from wetlands restored from agricultural land. I earned my master of science degree in soil science from NC State in 2010, and I am currently about halfway through my doctoral program in the same discipline, also at NC State. My areas of specialization are hydropedology, soil physics, soil and water conservation, and water quality. My goal is to enter into a tenure track position at a top research university where I can continue research and teaching in those areas.
Off-campus life
I am married to my beautiful bride of three years, Stacy. We have a beagle named Maisie, and we frequently foster dogs for the Triangle Beagle Rescue of North Carolina. In my free time I enjoy camping, cycling, geocaching, canoeing, hunting, gardening, homebrewing, and pretty much any other outdoor activity. I’m a big college football fan – specifically I am a fan of the Iowa State Cyclones, and the NC State Wolfpack. I’m also a huge baseball (Minnesota Twins) fan, and I have the goal of visiting each of the 30 major league baseball parks in my lifetime. I am active in the Millbrook Masonic Lodge #97, and I also enjoy blogging and reading.
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