St. Edward’s University students had an incredibly successful time at the Texas Society for Ecological Restoration Annual Conference in San Antonio this past weekend.
Clarissa Mae de Leon, Environmental Science and Policy (ENSP) major and McNair Scholar, won first place in the Undergraduate Student Oral Presentation competition for her presentation, “Mycorestoration of a Ligustrum invaded urban park in Austin, TX.” Clarissa’s study analyzed the removal of the invasive species with a native fungus at Blunn Creek. Master’s in Environmental Management and Sustainability (MSEM) student, Becky Woodward, and 6 other ENSP students – Jonathon Brooks, Madison Tumicki, Michael Gembarowski, April Carranza, Shirley Ochoa, and Bowen Wilder – gave poster presentations, all of which were received very positively by the audience. The students were able to network with professionals working within the conservation and restoration sectors in Texas and academics from UT-Austin, Texas A&M, and Trinity University. The keynote speaker, Dr. Joseph Veldman, Assistant Professor in Ecosystem Science & Management at Texas A&M University, sat down and spoke with St. Edward’s students about their presentations and future goals.
At left, students with Dr. Amy Concilio, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science.