Noah Gorman (Fall 2024 - Current)
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Noah graduated in 2024 with a B.S. in Biological and Physical Sciences (concentrating in Marine Biology) from FAU’s Wilkes Honors College, and completed an honors thesis investigating the impact of boat-generated wakes on the ecology of a seagrass meadow. His research interests are broad but have focused on marine conservation driven behavioral and benthic ecology: with a particular soft spot for seagrass meadow systems. Noah has additional research experience investigating echinoderm diversity in the Gulf of Mexico, aquaculture of mollusks, and manatee conservation.
Throughout his time as an undergraduate and continuing into his master program Noah has held various wildlife conservation and education positions with Palm Beach county-based organizations, such as the Loxahatchee River District and currently FPL’s Manatee Lagoon. Noah is excited to dive into the world of sponge research and conservation and plans to soak up the experience! |
Christopher Spagnolia (Spring 2021 - Summer 2023 - Master student / Spring 2024 - Current - Ph.D. student)
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Christopher holds a BSc in Zoology from North Dakota State University (2018) and a BSc in Biological Sciences from Florida Atlantic University (2020). For his master thesis he evaluated the effect of temperature anomalies on coral reef microhabitats and organisms interactions. He is currently a doctoral student in the Integrative Biology Program.
Christopher has worked across numerous ecosystems including wetlands, coral reefs and mine-tailings. As a technician at North Dakota State he provided animal husbandry on a telomeric project, and as research assistant he processed and analyze BigMouth Buffalo fish otoliths. He also developed a protocol and tutorial for AmScope microscopy, while simultaneously enhanced his Chironomid identification abilities. He is also interested in the microbiome of birds and interactions of hard coral and symbionts. At FAU he was the vice president and treasurer of the Environmental Sustainability Club. Beyond science, Christopher is an avid photographer, skateboarder and chess player. https://spagnoliasmash.weebly.com | https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christopher_Spagnolia | http://forumanalysiscts.weebly.com |
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Former Graduate Students
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Greer Babbe (Fall 2020 - Spring 2023)
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Greer Babbe graduated from Chadron State College with a B.S. in Biology with a focus on Environmental Resource Management. Her research interests include, benthic ecology and communities, and marine invertebrate reproductive biology, larvae development and ecology.
Before beginning her masters, Greer was a staff biologist for the Benthic Ecology department at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium where she focused on bivalve restoration in Sarasota Bay. She also held the positions of biologist and marine science instructor at Sarasota Bay Explorers and Seacamp Association Inc., respectively. Greer can't wait to absorb as much knowledge as possible and hopes to leave her spicule behind. |
Barbara (Bobbie) Crouch (Fall 2020 - Fall 2022)
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Barbara (Bobbie) Crouch graduated in 2016 with a B.S in Biology with a concentration in Marine Biology from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg (USFSP). Her primary interests include coral reef fragmentation and rehabilitation, marine migration, and behavioral ecology.
As an undergraduate student Barbara was a summer intern with the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in the education department. She presented education lectures and interactive activities, prepped animal diets, monitored the organisms in the touch tank and documented trawl net catches for the Fish and Wildlife bio codex. She worked with Dr. Judkins at USFSP on identifying organisms from the Deep-Pelagic Nekton Dynamics (DEEPEND) Consortium. She also interned at MOTE Marine Laboratory where she worked in the Ocean Acidification Program researching ecologically important species responses to ocean acidification. |
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Juliet Ruggiero (Fall 2019 - Summer 2021)
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Juliet Ruggiero graduated with a M.Sc. in Marine Science and Oceanography from FAU in 2021 and a B.S. in Marine Biology from the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) in 2019.
Her research interests include coral reef ecology, climate change, and water management in South Florida. As a graduate student, Juliet was a graduate research assistant at the HBOI Ocean Discovery Visitor Center and participated in research related to sponge population connectivity and taxonomy of sponges. Juliet is also interested in education and outreach, and during 2019 she worked as an instructor for the Funky Fish Ocean Camp in South East Florida. She currently works as a Biologist for the Miami-Dade County. |