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Earth and Oceanographic Science

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Alumni Profiles

We would love to hear what you are doing. Please contact the EOS department with your updates and comments. Updates to your alumni profile with the College's are also welcomed.
Alumni Profile of Sasha Kramer, Class of 2016

Sasha Kramer ’16

Major(s): Earth and Oceanographic Science and Environmental Studies

Minor: English

Location: Santa Barbara, California

Most memorable earth and oceanographic science course: Oceanography of the Gulf of Maine

The "community in EOS laid the groundwork for me to feel comfortable and confident moving into the next stages of my career and pursuing this work that is really important and interesting to me." 

What have you been up to since graduating from ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾?

I just graduated in June of 2022 with a PhD in Marine Science from the University of California Santa Barbara. I tried to attend all my friends' online defenses while preparing to do my own defense. It was a really fun couple of weeks.

Why earth and oceanographic science?

I was really interested in being able to pursue research in an area is applicable to so much of my life on earth. When you think about earth science, you might not immediately think about human health, but so much of what I was learning has been about the way that the earth is so essential for sustaining things like oxygen in the atmosphere, fisheries and people's ability to get sustainable food where they live, and mitigating impacts on climate. While going through my PhD and my undergraduate degree at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾, it was so much about the people who were doing the work. Marine science is just a very uniquely supportive and friendly group of people, so I felt very welcomed into the field and really encouraged. That community in EOS laid the groundwork for me to feel comfortable and confident moving into the next stages of my career and pursuing this work that is really important and interesting to me. I had experiences at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ that both made me feel intellectually confident to be able to contribute, but also personally welcomed and supported while doing the work.

Alumni Profile of Hannah Glover, Class of 2013

Hannah Glover ’13

Major(s): Earth and Oceanographic Science

Minor: Chemistry

Location: Corvallis, Oregon

Most memorable earth and oceanographic science class: Structural Geology and Analysis with Emily Peterman

"I really enjoyed [EOS] classes and it felt like a career trajectory where I could be very directly helping people and dealing with climate change."

What have you been up to since graduating from ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾?

My advisor, Rachel Beane, helped me get a job right after I graduated, at the Maine Geological Survey. I did that for six months, and then I moved to Seattle and got a job at a research center called the Applied Physics Lab, which is associated with the University of Washington and focused on mostly oceanography. I worked as an oceanographic field engineer there, and I maintained and repaired all sorts of oceanographic moorings and instruments to monitor water quality. I did this for two and a half years, but it was purely engineering—I wasn't really doing any science, per se. I decided that I wanted to get a chance to actually look at oceanographic data and not just the instruments used to collect data. I went back to graduate school at the University of Washington and I just finished my PhD in March of 2022. Now I'm doing research at Oregon State Univeristy!

Why did you choose earth and oceanographic science?

During my time at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾, I really liked science, but I was not good at standing in a lab all day. When I started taking EOS classes, there was something that really clicked for me—I was learning about the landscape around me and discovering, for example, that it's not an accident that there are hills in one place and rivers in another; there's rhyme and reason to it. I really enjoyed those classes and it felt like a career trajectory where I could be very directly helping people and dealing with climate change. EOS is a really nice intersection of spending time outdoors, engaging with hard science, and doing something that directly helps people.

Mark Hansen

Mark Hansen

Class of: 2014

Location: Tampa, FL

Major(s): Earth and Oceanographic Science

Mark is an oceanographer for the US Geological Survey. In his research on Kodiak Island, he deployed air particulate samplers to examine ash fall from volcanic events. He is also completing his art book on the retelling of the Gilgamesh mythology.

Patricia Thibodeau

Patricia Thibodeau

Class of: 2013

Location: Virginia Institute of Marine Science

Major(s): Earth and Oceanographic Science

Tricia published her honors thesis titled "Locating Noctiluc miliaris in the Arabian Sea: An Optical Proxy Approach" in the scientific journal Limnology and Oceanography. She participated in the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ College Scholars program after graduation and is now pursuing a Ph.D. in biological oceanography at the College of William and Mary's Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

Alexander Roberts-Pierel ’12

Major: Earth and Oceanographic Science

Major: Environmental Studies

Location: Topsham, Maine

Most memorable earth and oceanographic science class: Geomorphology

"I valued the balance of classroom and outdoor learning as I was able to experience and understand the Maine environment around me, while developing an appreciation for both the history and future of earth systems and climate."

What have you been uo to since graduating from ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾?

I was an environmental scientist for AECOM Environment and now am a solar developer for ReVision Energy, based in Portland, Maine.

Why earth and oceanographic science?

I was interested in EOS because it provided an opportunity to expand ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾'s classrooms into the Maine outdoors like other departments couldn't. I valued the balance of classroom and outdoor learning as I was able to experience and understand the Maine environment around me, while developing an appreciation for both the history and future of earth systems and climate. The enthusiasm and experience of the department faculty were as much a highlight as the curriculum. My EOS experience has directly led to a career in environmental consulting and renewable energy development in Maine. 

Isaac Irby

Isaac "Ike" Irby ’09

Major: Earth and Oceanographic Sciences

Location: Washington, DC

Most memorable earth and oceanographic science class: Geobiology

"We can't disentangle the environment we live in from the lives we live. Because I wanted to make an impact on people's lives as a scientist, earth and oceanographic science seemed like a great way to do it."

Irby's interests lie at the intersection of marine science and governmental policy. He is currently working as a senior policy advisor for Vice President Kamala Harris.

After graduating from ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾, Irby earned his PhD/MPP as a joint degree candidate between the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the William & Mary Program in Public Policy, both at the College of William & Mary in 2016. His dissertation focused on water quality modeling of the Chesapeake Bay, exploring the limitations of the model and identifying how these models can be used to assess water quality regulations. In 2017, he received a fellowship from the American Geophysical Union (AGU) as a Congressional Science Fellow. His work on Capitol Hill built upon previous executive branch experience that he gained while interning with the Office of Science and Technology Policy in Washington, DC. Today he is 

Why earth and oceanographic science?

We can't disentangle the environment we live in from the lives we live. Because I wanted to make an impact on people's lives as a scientist, earth and environmental science seemed like a great way to do it.

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