Skip to main content
Davis College
WVU Home

Graduate Students

Brin Kessinger
(M.S. student)

Brin

Brin grew up in Xenia, a city outside of Dayton, Ohio. Throughout middle and high school, science remained her favorite subject. After high school, she pursued her Bachelor of Science degree in Evolution and Ecology with a minor in Fisheries at The Ohio State University. During the summer break of 2015, she completed an undergraduate research project with the USGS Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Unit at the University of Arkansas on changes in Smallmouth Bass ( Micropterus dolomieu ) growth rate potential with climate change. Her Master’s thesis involves investigating the population genetic structure of the endangered Candy Darter ( Etheostoma osburni). Outside the lab, Brin enjoys reading, cooking, hiking, and playing board games.

Caroline Harms
(M.S. student)

Caroline

Caroline was born and raised in South Bend, Indiana. Proximity to Lake Michigan and forested areas of Michigan sparked her love for the outdoors and all things nature. Caroline also had a personal interest in genetics from a young age, which led her to attend Purdue University to study wildlife and biology with a focus on genetics. Caroline worked in a disease ecology lab at Purdue conducting DNA extractions when she decided she wanted to continue her schooling in the wildlife genetics direction. Immediately after receiving her B.S. in wildlife she started her M.S. at West Virginia University on a population genetics project. Caroline’s project at WVU involves looking at the state’s fisher ( Pekania pennanti) population via genetic analysis to determine population structure and gene flow between nearby fisher populations. While at WVU, Caroline has been able to fulfil her other passion: teaching. She has taught labs for wildlife techniques and wildlife silviculture courses. After completing her M.S., Caroline hopes to obtain a teaching position within the conservation genetics realm. 

Affiliated Post-Docs & Students

Yvette Halley-Schultz, Ph.D.

YvetteYvette grew up in East Texas.  She attended Texas A&M University where obtained both her B.S. in Biomedical Science and Ph.D. in Genetics.  Her interests revolve around using  molecular genetic, genomic, and population genetic techniques to conserve and manage wild populations .  Her major dissertation research utilized genomic methods to assemble and analyze the bobwhite quail genome to help provide more formal resources for managing and studying bobwhite quail populations. As a Postdoc at WVU, she has focused on noninvasive conservation methods using environmental DNA (eDNA) to measure target species and community composition of Appalachian Streams and Wetlands.  In her spare time, Yvette enjoys hiking with her dog, biking, reading, and cooking.

Lucas Price 
(Ph.D. student)

Lucas

Lucas was born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia and obtained a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Resources from West Virginia University. As an undergraduate, Lucas studied lake sturgeon population genetics in the St. Lawrence River. After completing his B.S. degree, Lucas obtained a master’s degree from Central Michigan University in Conservation Biology. His research involved noninvasive surveys (scat collection and wildlife tracking) to study the usage of roads as travel corridors and genetic population structure of gray wolves in Wisconsin and Michigan. As a Ph.D. student at West Virginia University, Lucas is studying Lyme disease and black-legged tick ecology at Fort Drum Military Installation. As part of this project, Lucas is working to determine past blood meal sources of ticks using genetic techniques. He enjoys spending time outdoors in his free time by fly fishing in the summer and downhill skiing in the winter.

Alumnae