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Connor Morozumi
Postdoctoral Fellow I am a community ecologist interested in understanding mutualistic interactions in a changing world. My postdoctoral research will investigate how cover crops in soybean alter microbial community networks. Additionally, I will investigate how these interactions may be impacted by climate change by challenging plants with elevated CO2 and observing microbiome shifts. I will also be building synthetic networks of cover crops and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the lab. Before joining this lab group, I received my PhD in Population Biology, Ecology, and Evolution from Emory University in 2022 where I focused on how perturbations change plant-pollinator networks. Before that I completed a master’s degree from Oregon State University and undergraduate training at University of California, Santa Cruz. Visit Connor's website here! |
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Noelle Visser
PhD Candidate After receiving my master’s degree in medical mycology from the University of Manchester and investigating genetic variation in Candida albicans as a lab tech at the University of Michigan, I decided to revisit my initial introduction to research – fungal ecology. I’m interested in the various roles fungal foliar endophyte communities have in their host plants and how this may influence secondary metabolite production. Additionally, I will examine the anthosphere - the floral microbiome, investigating how fungal endophytes found in petals alter floral volatile composition profiles. I also want to bridge the subjects of history and science through organizations like botanical gardens. These institutes can serve as a source for cultivating environmental interest in the public as well as engage communities by providing access to hands-on educational programs, which are otherwise not readily available. |
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Emma Throneburg
PhD Candidate I am a biology education researcher and ecologist interested in understanding how to improve student persistence in science, particularly for students with historically excluded and currently underrepresented identities. My current research focuses on how a first-year, two-semester, soil microbiome Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) can impact student outcomes such as science identity, scientific self-efficacy, and science community values. My upcoming research examining urban soil microbiomes will expand on the work that undergraduate students complete within the CURE courses. Before joining the Christian lab, I earned my bachelors degree at Lenoir-Rhyne University where my honors thesis focused on African elephant behavior at the North Carolina Zoo. |
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Drew Nisip
PhD Candidate Aysha Tapp Ross
PhD Candidate |
Current Undergraduate Researchers:
Ali Cass
Dylan Habeeb
Trinity France
Leo Mellen
Alexx Nicholas
Elizabeth Oakes
Isabel Zanartu
Ali Cass
Dylan Habeeb
Trinity France
Leo Mellen
Alexx Nicholas
Elizabeth Oakes
Isabel Zanartu
Christian lab alumni:
Dr. Allison Rietman (2020-2025)
Dr. Kylea Garces (2020-2023)
Naomi Frese (2024-2025)
Jacob Hack (2024-2025)
Autumn Howard (2024-2025)
Lucia Amani (2022-2023)
Hillary Payne (2020-2022)
Haley Sage (2020-2022)
Abigail Hazelwood (2021-2022)
Valeriya Kukharskaya (2021-2022)
Elizabeth Rogers (2021-2022)
Heba Qaissi (2021-2022)
Alexandra Matthews (2022)
Alexa Comissiong (2021)
Dr. Allison Rietman (2020-2025)
Dr. Kylea Garces (2020-2023)
Naomi Frese (2024-2025)
Jacob Hack (2024-2025)
Autumn Howard (2024-2025)
Lucia Amani (2022-2023)
Hillary Payne (2020-2022)
Haley Sage (2020-2022)
Abigail Hazelwood (2021-2022)
Valeriya Kukharskaya (2021-2022)
Elizabeth Rogers (2021-2022)
Heba Qaissi (2021-2022)
Alexandra Matthews (2022)
Alexa Comissiong (2021)