Fifteen Miami University graduate students in Project Dragonfly ’s Advanced Inquiry Program (AIP) and Global Field Program (GFP) were recently awarded scholarships totaling $11,200.

About Our 2022 Scholarship Winners

Rosie Bloom Scholarship

AIP graduate student Anna Brown and GFP graduate student Andrea Haugen both of Cincinnati, Ohio, are the recipients of the Rosie Bloom Scholarship. The scholarship, named for local Audubon Society charter member and nature advocate Rosie Bloom, helps support Earth Expeditions (EE) students who live or work in the Audubon Miami Valley membership area.

Anna (she/her) is a plant protection and quarantine technician for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Asian Longhorned Beetle Eradication program. Since joining the AIP in 2018, Anna has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in unique learning experiences on the grounds of Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden and in natural settings around Ohio. This summer Anna will focus her independent studies on holistic sustainable agriculture.

Andrea (she/her) works as a senior cat ambassador trainer at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. Since joining the GFP in 2020, Andrea has taken conservation education courses. This summer Andrea will travel to Namibia to experience ongoing research projects such as radio tracking, cheetah conservation and ecosystem management, as well as the design of school and community programs.

Dragonfly’s Inquiry, Community, Voice Scholarship

AIP graduate students Amy Castaneda of Chicago, Illinois, Sydnee Foster of West Hartford, Connecticut, and Gretchen Uhrinek of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, are the recipients of Dragonfly’s Inquiry, Community, Voice Scholarship. Created in 2021, the Dragonfly scholarship supports Dragonfly students who are committed to furthering the fields of inclusion, diversity, environmental justice, and other related fields using innovative and relevant approaches to conservation.

Amy (she/her) works as a teacher. Since joining the AIP in 2020, Amy has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in experiential learning on the grounds of Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo and in and around Illinois. This summer Amy will participate in an online Dragonfly course with conservationists from around the world to launch a conservation campaign for positive ecological and social change.

Sydnee (she/her) is an animal curator and lead educator at Roaring Brook Nature Center. Since joining the AIP in 2020, Sydnee has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in experiential learning on the grounds of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo and in natural settings around New York. This summer Sydnee will investigate environmental stewardship, research science and conservation opportunities and solutions in local communities, practice inquiry-based learning, and develop a community conservation project.

Gretchen (she/her) is an editor for SAE International, an engineering non-profit organization. Since joining the AIP in 2021, Gretchen has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in unique learning experiences on the grounds of Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and in natural settings around Ohio. Gretchen’s master’s work focuses on environmental justice and the impact mining has had on Appalachia.

José Pareja-Wendy Tori Scholarship

GFP graduate students Amanda Dale of Elgin, Texas, Mattie Forte of Mountain View, California, and Julianne Turner of Alexandria, Louisiana, are the recipients of the José Pareja-Wendy Tori Scholarship. José I. and Wendy, who are natives of Peru, were a part of the Dragonfly team at its inception in 2008, and they are currently both faculty members at Earlham College. 

Amanda (she/her) is a rhino savannah keeper for the Living Desert Zoo and Garden. Since joining the GFP in 2020, Amanda has participated in an online course with conservationists from around the world to launch a conservation campaign for positive ecological and social change. This summer Amanda will travel to Paraguay to work to co-develop an eco-leadership program with our partner, Para La Tierra.

Mattie (they/them) works as an environmental educator and deckhand for the Marine Science Institute of Redwood City, California. Since joining the GFP in 2020, Mattie has traveled to Belize and participated in an online course with conservationists from around the world. Mattie has launched projects to assess the barriers to inclusion in the conservation field to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex (LGBTQI+) individuals, and serves as one of Project Dragonfly’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Coordinators. This summer Mattie will travel to the Galápagos Islands to study the forces of evolutionary, geologic, and social change through work with Ecology Project International (EPI), a longtime champion of inquiry-driven field science and sustainability.

Julianne (she/her) is an education associate at Alexandria Zoo. Since joining the GFP in 2021, Julianne has traveled to Belize to study coral reefs, manatees, howler monkeys, jaguars and other wildlife while learning the methods communities are using to sustain them. This summer, Julianne will travel to Guyana to study traditional ecological knowledge of the Makushi and the potential of local wisdom to guide conservation initiatives.

Carrie R. Wilson Memorial Scholarship

AIP graduate student Morgan Buehlmann of St. Louis, Missouri, is the recipient of the Carrie R. Wilson Memorial Scholarship. Pelecanus Inc., a non-profit organization co-founded by AIP graduate Austin Parker and his brother Taylor, created this scholarship in 2021 in memory of Carrie Wilson, who served as Dean of Students at the University of San Diego Law School and believed in community inspiration through direct and intentional action.

Morgan (she/her) works as a preschool teacher. Since joining the AIP in 2020, Morgan has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in unique learning experiences on the grounds of Missouri Botanical Garden, its facilities, and in natural settings around Missouri. This summer Morgan will travel to Paraguay to work to co-develop an eco-leadership program with our partner, Para La Tierra.

Summer Credit Workshop Study Abroad Scholarship

GFP graduate students Serenity Kemp of Westerville, Ohio, and Ilana Morris of New Rochelle, N.Y., are the recipients of the Summer Credit Workshop Study Abroad Scholarship. Through this scholarship, Miami’s Global Initiatives office supports Miami University’s commitment to dynamic and comprehensive internationalization and to diverse cultural and global learning experiences for students.

Serenity (she/her) joined the GFP in 2022. This summer Serenity will travel to Belize to study coral reefs, manatees, howler monkeys, jaguars, and other wildlife while learning the methods communities are using to sustain them. Serenity graduated with a bachelor’s in botany from Miami University in 2022.

Ilana (she/her) is an assistant zookeeper in the herpetology department at the Bronx Zoo. Since joining the GFP in 2020, Ilana has taken an online course with conservationists from around the world to launch a conservation campaign for positive ecological and social change. This summer Ilana will travel to Costa Rica to study lowland rain forest and montane cloud forests while investigating the biotic, physical, and cultural forces that affect tropical biodiversity.

T.K. Wilson-Hardy Eshbaugh Scholarship

GFP graduate students Ava Goodale of Millbrook, New York, and David Owen of Mississauga, Ontario, and AIP graduate students Emily Hemeyer of Frankford, Missouri, and Taylor Kennedy Frenchi of Mebane, North Carolina, are the recipients of the T.K. Wilson-Hardy Eshbaugh Scholarship. This fund is possible in part due to emeritus professors, T.K. Wilson, a leader in Bahamian floral biodiversity studies, and Hardy Eshbaugh, a pioneer in the field of ethnobotany working in many global locations. 

Ava (she/her) works as a school district science department chair. Since joining the GFP in 2020, Ava has traveled to the Galápagos Islands to study the forces of evolutionary, geologic, and social change through work with Ecology Project International (EPI), a longtime champion of inquiry-driven field science and sustainability. This summer, Ava will travel to Kenya to study Maasai communities and sustainable approaches to human-wildlife coexistence.

David (they/them) is a Country Director for Bring The Elephant Home, a nonprofit organization in Thailand working to create a world in which people and wild elephants can coexist in harmony. Since joining the GFP in 2020, David has worked with farmers on the border of Kuiburi National Park to plant alternative crops as a means to achieve human-elephant coexistence and bring social, economic and ecological benefits to people living in close proximity to elephants. This summer, David will travel to Kenya to study Maasai communities and sustainable approaches to human-wildlife coexistence.

Emily (she/they) is a teaching artist, educator, and education consultant. Since joining the AIP in 2020, Emily has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in unique learning experiences on the grounds of Missouri Botanical Garden and in natural settings around Missouri. This summer Emily will travel to Costa Rica to study lowland rain forest and montane cloud forests while investigating the biotic, physical, and cultural forces that affect tropical biodiversity.

Taylor (she/her) works as a field biologist. Since joining the AIP in 2021, Taylor has taken courses on the web from Miami University while also participating in unique learning experiences on the grounds of Denver Zoo and in natural settings around Colorado. This summer Taylor will investigate environmental stewardship, research science and conservation opportunities and solutions in their local communities, practice inquiry-based learning, and develop a community conservation project.

Since 2009, Dragonfly graduate students have received $55,700 in scholarship funds. If you are interested in learning more about these scholarship opportunities, please visit the Dragonfly Scholarships webpage. If you are interested in becoming a scholarship donor, please contact Jill Korach at korachjk@miamioh.edu or contribute to our ongoing Dragonfly scholarship here.