Principal Investigator

Dr. Glass is an Assistant Professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. She is also a Research Associate at the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity in Makhanda (Grahamstown) South Africa and a Fellow of The Explorers Club.

In her free time, Jessica enjoys traveling, skiing, camping, and trail runs with her dog, Maloti.

Please get in touch if you are interested in joining my lab in Fairbanks, Alaska!

Postdoctoral Fellow

Laura Timm's research interests center on describing the state and flux of genetic diversity and the ways that this information can be used to improve our understanding of species health and stability. She earned her PhD and Masters in Biology at Florida International University, researching phylogenetics and population genetics of crustaceans in the Gulf of Mexico, including giant deep-sea isopods, penaeid shrimp, and midwater decapods. She is now a postdoctoral research fellow in the CICOES program, focused on developing the role of population genomics in fisheries management. Since moving to Alaska, she has designed a bioinformatic pipeline for generating basic population genomics results from whole genome resequencing data, specifically low coverage data. She has used this tool to investigate population genetic structure in sablefish and an array of rockfish species. Currently, she is investigating population structure in Pacific cod and Pacific herring.

Laura enjoys hiking, recreational media theory (esp. horror), and doing all the voices while reading "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?".

Lab Manager

Julian recently graduated with a BS in Biological Sciences at UAF. He worked in Dr. Muscarella’s microbial ecology lab during his undergrad, and is experienced with lab procedures and metagenomics. Julian is hoping to start an MS or PhD in Fall 2024 involving bioengineering to help solve environmental or material problems. In his free time, Julian enjoys practicing Japanese and traveling to Japan.

PhD Student, Fisheries

Rachel Lekanoff earned her masters in Oceanography at UAF and her bachelors at Western Washington University in Environmental Science. She is now a graduate student at UAF CFOS (again!) and a Tamamta fellow pursuing a PhD in Fisheries. In addition to school, she works for the Qawalangin Tribe of Unalaska. As the Tribe’s Fisheries Manager, she works closely with the Alaska Department of Fish & Game to co-manage local subsistence salmon fisheries for the benefit of local Tribe members.

Outside of work and school, Rachel is an avid cyclist and cross-country skier and is frequently on the incredible trail networks in and around Anchorage.

MS Student, Fisheries

Sydney is researching the population genomics of Pacific herring in the eastern Bering Sea. She hopes that understanding the population genetic structure of these herring groups can help inform fisheries management decisions. Sydney enjoys cooking, trying new outdoor activities, and relaxing with friends and family.

MS Student, Fisheries

Maris is a member of the NSF EPSCoR Fire and Ice Coastal Margins team. She uses eDNA metabarcoding to study the community composition of estuarine sites with varying degrees of glacial influence in Lynn Canal and Kachemak Bay, Alaska. In her free time, Maris enjoys rock climbing, hiking with her dog Willow, and reading books!

Undergraduate Student, Fisheries

Undergraduate Student, Fisheries

Emilie is a senior at UAF. She spent the last summer collecting eDNA samples from 3 north flowing arctic rivers. She will be analyzing the samples and looking for evidence of salmon colonization in the arctic. She spends her summer guiding extended wilderness trips throughout the arctic and playing with her team of sled dogs in the winters.

Undergraduate Student, Biological Sciences

Isabelle is a junior at UAF. With funding from URSA, she is working with MS student Sydney Almgren to better understand the population genetic structure of eastern Bering Sea Pacific Herring using mitochondrial DNA. Her hobbies include skijoring, downhill skiing, and suana-ing!

Undergraduate Student, Biological Sciences

Zoe is an undergrad attending the University of Alaska Fairbanks to get a B.S. in Biological Sciences. She hopes to do further studies in genetics and evolution throughout her college career and eventually move on to do lab and field work to focus on those areas. In her spare time, she enjoys playing tennis, cooking, being in the outdoors, and studying Chinese, French, and Japanese.

Undergraduate Student, Fisheries

Jennifer is an undergraduate in the Fisheries Department, using eDNA to study sea star distribution in Kachemak Bay with funding from URSA. She has been involved with the EPSCoR Fire and Ice Project for over 2 years. In her spare time she enjoys hiking and water sports.