Dorothy Stout Grant Recipients for 2019

Hannah Miller, Oxford College or Emory University

Hannah is currently a student at Oxford College of Emory University, where she is a double major in English and Environmental Science. After researching coral bleaching at the University of Hawai'i, Hannah has become a passionate advocate for ocean conservation and coral restoration. She will utilize this award to fund a specialized college course, Modern and Ancient Tropical Environments, where she will travel to the San Salvador island of the Bahamas to study island biogeography and reef ecology in her upcoming school year.

Marissa Isaak Wald, Central New Mexico Community College, Albuquerque, NM

Marissa is a Full Time Instructor of Geography at Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque, NM, where she teaches Physical and Human Geography. She has recently completed an open-source lab manual to bring real world data analysis to her students. This grant will enable her to add a virtual reality component to the lab. She will create a virtual field trip of the Rio Grande riparian area, so that her students can "tour" their ecoregion up close and be exposed to the newest technologies in Earth science learning. Marissa received her PhD at University of Arizona in Geography studying the impacts of high technology water systems on political life and always tries to weave an interdisciplinary approach to her classes.

Sharon L Karackattu, Ph.D., Oak Hall School, Gainesville, FL

Sharon L. Karackattu earned a B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Florida in 2000 and completed a Ph.D. in Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2006. She served as a postdoctoral associate in MIT's Biological Engineering Division before spending two years as a Research Coordinator for Student Development at University of North Texas. She is currently a high school science instructor at Oak Hall School, an independent PreK-12 institution in Gainesville, FL specializing in chemistry and the life sciences. She has taught college-level courses in the biosciences and maintains and interest in studying students pursuing the STEM fields. She will utilize the Dorothy Stout Award to fund the development of cobalt-electroplated phosphate sensors to investigate contamination of local water sources in collaboration with teachers in other grades to foster enthusiasm for chemistry and environmental science among students at all levels.