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NOAA Office of Education has selected three recipients for the José E. Serrano Educational Partnership Program with Minority Serving Institutions (EPP/MSI) Graduate Fellowship Program, class of 2022.
The class of 2022 EPP/MSI Graduate Fellows. From left to right, Julio Ceniceros, Summer Crescent, and Travis Leggett . (Image credit: Photos courtesy of each fellow)
The EPP/MSI Graduate Fellowship Program is designed to serve as a workforce pipeline to NOAA for qualified students currently supported at EPP/MSI Cooperative Science Centers and pursuing graduate degrees in disciplines that are aligned with the NOAA mission.
The selected EPP/MSI fellows spend a year conducting collaborative research at a NOAA facility and participate in professional development training.
"We welcome the new class of EPP/MSI Graduate Fellows. These fellowships provide an opportunity for talented Cooperative Science Center graduate students to immerse themselves in NOAA research, operations, and management activities and grow their professional network," said Louisa Koch, Director of Education.
2022 Graduate Fellowship Program awardees
The selected fellows are
- Julio Ceniceros of the NOAA Center for Earth System Sciences & Remote Sensing Technologies
- Summer Martinez-Crescent of the NOAA Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems
- Travis Leggett of the NOAA Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems
They will complete their fellowship research in the Physical Science Laboratory, Hollings Marine Laboratory, and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, respectively. Read more about the selected fellows below.
Julio Ceniceros
Julio Ceniceros is an environmental engineering Ph.D. student at the NOAA Center for Earth System Science and Remote Sensing Technology at University of Texas at El Paso. Julio will conduct his fellowship research in NOAA Research at the Physical Sciences Laboratory with mentorship of Elizabeth Thompson, Ph.D. and his academic advisor at University of Texas at El Paso.
... I hope to [gain] an understanding for how all the amazing NOAA research gets accomplished and to experience the life of a NOAA scientist for one full year.
What do you expect to accomplish during your tenure as an EPP/MSI Graduate Fellow?
My major motivation for applying to the [EPP/MSI Graduate Fellowship] is my intent to join the NOAA workforce after graduation. As such, I hope this opportunity will foster federal networking connections that are so critical in obtaining a federal researcher position within NOAA. Additionally, I expect my technical and professional skill sets to be honed by working on world-class research datasets and data analysis procedures. I also hope to take full advantage of gaining real-life experiences that are only possible outside of a formal classroom setting, for example, by participating in a month-long shipborne field campaign in Indonesia where I will gain hands-on experience collecting climate quality air-sea flux data observations. Overall, I hope to accomplish really gaining an understanding for how all the amazing NOAA research gets accomplished and to experience the life of a NOAA scientist for one full year.
Summer Martinez-Crescent
Summer Crescent is a biology master’s student at the NOAA Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems at Florida A&M University. Summer will conduct her fellowship research in NOAA's National Ocean Service at the Hollings Marine Lab with mentorship of Ed Wirth, Ph.D and her academic advisor at Florida A&M University.
I intend to utilize the resources and expertise provided to me by this fellowship and Hollings Marine Lab to complete my thesis work, obtain new skills, and advance professionally.
What do you expect to accomplish during your tenure as an EPP/MSI Graduate Fellow?
I intend to utilize the resources and expertise provided to me by this fellowship and Hollings Marine Lab to complete my thesis work, obtain new skills, and advance professionally. Most importantly, I want to fill knowledge gaps in the field of mycoremediation and spread its awareness to NOAA and partnerships
Travis Leggett
Travis Leggett is a marine science master’s student at the NOAA Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems at California State University, Monterey Bay. Travis will conduct his fellowship research in NOAA's National Ocean Service at the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary with mentorship of Steve Lonhart, Ph.D. and his academic advisor at California State University, Monterey Bay
I am excited to explore working relationships within NOAA and specifically Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary through collaborative endeavors with my NOAA mentor.
What do you expect to accomplish during your tenure as an EPP/MSI Graduate Fellow?
As an EPP/MSI Graduate Fellow, I am excited to explore working relationships within NOAA and specifically Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary through collaborative endeavors with my NOAA mentor. I hope to produce meaningful data that will better serve living resource monitoring initiatives, bolstering community and ecosystem resilience to climate change related stressors. I am thankful for the unique experiences this opportunity affords me and the opportunity to collaborate with NOAA scientists and experts and the range of expertise displayed at my host facility.
