What are you up to now?

Naomi Clark

REU '03

Mentors: Eric Davidson, Kathleen Savage

Project: Comparing root respiration of three tree species

Hometown: Harpers Ferry, WV

College and major: West Virginia University, Biology, class of '04

• What you miss most about the REU program: I miss so many things! For one, the people I met were truly amazing. The setting couldn't have been better, either! I'll never forget our weekend adventures or midweek climbs up the water tower!
• What you miss least about the REU program: Black flies!
• What about the REU program has stuck with you: The sense of community was really moving for me. Since my REU, I've tried to incorporate that into new labs, living situations, and friendships.
• Have you stayed in touch with other REU students?: Definitely! I've met up with many of them all over the country. One even moved a block away from me a few years ago.
• Whether your REU experience supported or changed your career plans: Supported. I went on to get my Masters at the University of Nevada where I worked at the desert FACE facility. My plant-soil work at HF helped me hit the ground running with root respiration and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi studies.
• What you're up to now: Currently, I am a lab manager for an ecology professor at UC Davis. We're examining the effects of global change and grazing regimes on the nutrient cycling of California grasslands. What's next? I'm not sure, yet!