Fall 2018
Adam Pruett
Adam Pruett received his undergraduate degree in Biology at Wayne State University in 2016. He is currently pursuing his Master of Urban Planning degree at WSU. Adam’s interest in sustainability began with his involvement in SEED Wayne, an initiative focused on building sustainable food systems in Detroit. Today, Adam leads the Detroit Biodiversity Network, a student organization that uses native Michigan plants to develop green infrastructure projects on campus and in surrounding communities. Adam’s research interests include urban ecology, ecological restoration, and the policy, governance and optimization of GSI. Adam is landscape ecology intern at ECT Inc., where he works on GSI, restoration and invasive species management projects. In his free time, Adam loves rock climbing, botanizing, exploring Detroit, and tinkering with his drone.
Adam graduated from WSU and the T-RUST program with an MUP in Urban Studies and Planning in 2020.
Brittanie Dabney
Brittanie Dabney is a PhD student in the Department of Biological Sciences in Dr. Donna Kashian’s laboratory. Originally from Detroit, MI, she received her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Wayne State University. As an NSF Graduate Research Fellow, she went on to study the impacts of metals and fine-sediment loading at EPA Superfund sites on Rocky Mountain aquatic ecosystems and received her first master’s degree in Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Biology at Colorado State University. She later received her second master’s degree in Environmental Toxicology at Texas Tech University studying the growth of harmful alga exposed to low-doses of pesticides. During her previous graduate experience, she had the opportunity to do additional collaborative research with the U.S. Geological Survey and in Japan as an NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes Fellow. As a T-RUST student, she will focus on the impacts of contamination and human disturbances on the sustainability of water resources in Detroit, Michigan.
Héctor Esparra-Escalera
Héctor Esparra-Escalera is native from Puerto Rico, currently a Ph.D. student of the Biological Sciences Department in WSU. He earned his B.S and M.S in Biology at the University of Puerto Rico. During both programs at UPR, his main research interest was focused on morphological taxonomy and ecology of freshwater macroinvertebrates (especially gastropods), as well as organisms associated to plankton and benthos in different streams and reservoirs of Puerto Rico. His latest research in Puerto Rico consisted in the evaluation of nutrient cycle and periphyton biomass development in presence of two invasive Thiarid snails (Thiara granifera and Melanoides tuberculata) in freshwater artificial systems, who have an impact on trophic chain and, subsequently, the local macrofauna of the island. Beyond academia, he enjoys acting, singing, and dancing, in addition to spending time traveling and learning about different cultures and lifestyles.
Jonathan Weyhrauch
Jonathan Weyhrauch is a PhD Student in Environmental Engineering under the advisement of Dr. Yongli Zhang in the Sustainable Water Energy and Environmental Technologies lab (SWEET Lab). Prior to joining academia, he worked for many years as an engineering tech making solar cells and panels. During this time, he received a BS in Biology with a minor in Chemistry and a BS in Environmental Science with a concentration in resource management and sustainability from Oakland University. He then came to Wayne State University pursuing an MS in Geology. During Jon’s tenure in Geology he worked as a research assistant studying geospatial distributions of heavy metals in urban gardens, soil health parameters of impacted urban soils, and the impact of radioactivity in urban soils on human health. Jon also founded and manages Reroot Pontiac, a non-profit in Pontiac, MI focused on developing blighted abandoned lots into interactive educational spaces focused on environmental, biodiversity and sustainability topics.
Katrina Lewandowski
Katrina Lewandowski is a Master's student in Biological Sciences working in the lab of Dr. Donna Kashian. She completed her B.S. degree from the University of Michigan in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in 2015. Last year, Katrina worked as an Urban Wildlife Research Intern and volunteered with the Urban Wildlife Institute at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. While there, she assisted with wildlife monitoring and ecology research along an urban-exurban gradient. She is excited to continue urban aquatic ecology research as a new student at Wayne. In her free time, Katrina enjoys making desserts, hiking, and knitting.
Khurram Imam
Khurram Imam is a first-year Economics student. Prior to graduate school, he worked for Michigan State University Extension as a food business development counselor, a financial education instructor, and an entrepreneurship/community vitality program coordinator. In his free time, Khurram is involved with community projects on domestic violence, youth programs, refugees, and homelessness.
Zoha Siddiqua
Zoha Siddiqua is a second year Master’s student in the Pharmaceutical Sciences department, her major being pharmacology/toxicology. She completed her bachelor’s degree in pharmaceutical sciences in June 2017 from Osmania University in India. She is currently working on the endocrine disrupting chemicals and contaminants of emerging concern in Detroit drinking water and their effects on Daphnia pulex and Zebrafish in the lab of Dr. David K Pitts. As an international student, her free time is spent exploring the city while enjoying learning about cultural differences and histories.
