Past Students
Josh Bruegge
Josh is originally from Iowa and received a B.S. from Iowa State University. His current research focuses on shifts in fish communities in response to restoration efforts in the rivers of Illinois.
Tyler Pasley
Tyler is from Shelbyville, Illinois, and he graduated from the University of Illinois Springfield with a BA in environmental studies in 2021. Before coming to EIU, he worked as a research technician for the Illinois Natural History Survey. His thesis research focuses on invasive carp reproduction and zooplankton community composition in tributaries of the Illinois and Wabash rivers.
mitchell Rosandich
Mitch is originally from the suburbs of Chicago but chose to study fisheries at Colorado State University for his bachelors. He then spent a few years working in the field before coming to EIU to complete his masters. His research focuses on establishing a sampling protocol for Channel Catfish in smaller impoundments.
Valerie Thompson
Valerie is originally from Milford, OH, and obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Biology from EIU while playing on the softball team there. She is currently a graduate research assistant in the EIU Center for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences and is studying Channel Catfish population demographics in the Wabash River. Her hobbies include hunting, fishing, reading books, and drawing (especially pictures of fish), and her favorite fish is the Shovelnose Sturgeon.
Alexis Vandenberg
Alexis is originally from Channahon, IL and graduated from EIU with her B.S. in environmental biology. She continued at EIU to get her Master’s degree where studies fish and macroinvertebrate community response to stream restoration.