Alumni

Below is a list of Alumni compiled from past and present students. If you find an error or can add information to an alumni, please contact Karen Brasher

William "Bill" R. Alexander

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1988-1990)
Current Position:  Refuge Manager, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bald Knob National Wildlife Refuge
Location:  Searcy, AR

Barb (Lercel) Avers

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1995-1997)
Current Position:  State Waterfowl Biologist, Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Location:  Lansing, MI

Scott Barras

Degree:  B.S. & M.S. Degrees (1990-1993)
Current Position:  Virginia State Director, Animal Plant and Health Inspection Services
Location:  Moseley, VA

Steve Barry

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1990-1992)
Advisor:  Richard Kaminski and Ed Hill
Current Position:  Deceased

Michael Brasher

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1998-2000)
Current Position:  Biological Team Leader, Gulf Coast Joint Venture
Location:  Lafayette, LA

Kevin Brunke

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2004-2007)
Thesis:   The Role Of Expectations On Waterfowl Hunter Satisfaction
Advisor:  Kevin Hunt and Richard Kaminski
Current Position:  Conservation Resources Biologist, Migratory Game Bird Program, Mississippi Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Parks
Location:  Jackson, MS

James Callicut

Degree:  B.S. Degree (2007)
Thesis:   Decrescendo Vocalizations Of Female Mallards And Mimicry By Duck Callers
Degree:  M.S. Degree (2010)
Current Position:  Conservation Resources Biologist, Waterfowl Program, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks
Location:  Jackson, MS

Matt Chouinard

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2001-2003)
Current Position:  Staff Biologist, Delta Waterfowl Foundation
Location:  Morris, MN

Terrel Christie

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2019)
Thesis:   Predation risk of Double-crested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) on commercial catfish production in the Mississippi Delta (2019)
Current Position:  Biological Sciences

Stephan A. Clements

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2019)
Thesis:   Foraging ecology and depredation impact of scaup on commercial baitfish and sportfish farms in eastern Arkansas (2019)
Current Position:  PhD, WFA, Mississippi State University

Dr. Jose A. Cruz-Burgos

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2000-2005)
Advisor:  Francisco Vilella and Richard Kaminski
Current Position:  Wetlands/Wildlife Biologist, Puerto Rico Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Location:  San Juan, PR

Dr. J. Brian Davis

Degree:  M.S. & Ph.D. Degrees (1995-2001)
Advisor:  Richard Kaminski and Bruce Leopold
Current Position:  Assistant Professor, Mississippi State University
Location:  Mississippi State, MS

Dean W. Demarest

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1990-1993)
Current Position:  Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Atlanta, GA

Dr. Jim A. Dubovsky

Degree:  M.S. & Ph.D. Degrees (1984-1990)
Current Position:  Central Flyway Representative, Division of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Denver, CO

James Feaga

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2011-2013)
Thesis:   Winter Waterbird Use and Food Resources of Aquaculture Lands in Mississippi
Advisor:  Francisco Vilella
Current Position:

Alexis Firth

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2018)
Advisor:  Dr. Beth Backer
Current Position:

David Fishman

Degree: Ph.D. Degree
Current Position:

K. Sarah Fleming

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2010)
Thesis:   Effects of management and hydrology on vegetation, winter waterbird use, and water quality on wetlands reserve program lands, Mississippi
Current Position:  Regional Biologist, Ducks Unlimited, Inc.
Location:  Ann Arbor, MN

Justyn Foth

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2010) and Ph.D. Student
Thesis:   Aquatic invertebrate biomass and community composition in greentree reservoirs and naturally flooded forests in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley and interior flatwoods
Dissertation:   Fall Migrant Waterbird Community Structure and Stable Isotope Ecology in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley and Northern Gulf of Mexico: Use of Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative Sites and Other Wetlands
Advisor:  Francisco Vilella
Current Position:

Dr. David. R. Gordon

Degree:  Post-doctoral fellow (1985)
Current Position:  Chief, Branch of Science and Planning, Division of Bird Habitat Conservation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Washington, D.C.

Dr. Brian T. Gray

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (1988-1992)
Current Position:  Assistant Deputy Minister, Science Branch, Environment Canada
Location:  Gatineau, Quebec Canada

Matthew J. Gray

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1993-1995)
Current Position:  Associate Professor, Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee
Location:  Knoxville, TN

Heath M. Hagy

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2011)
Thesis:   Winter food and waterfowl dynamics in managed moist-soil wetlands in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Current Position:  Director, Frank C. Bellrose Memorial Lab, Illinois Natural History Survey
Location:  Havana, IL

J. Houston Havens

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2004-2007)
Current Position:  Conservation Resources Biologist, Migratory Game Bird Program Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
Location:  Jackson, MS

Jeremy James

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1998-2001)
Advisor:  Steve Schoenholtz and Richard Kaminski
Current Position:  Religious minister
Location:  Memphis, TN

Molly Kneece

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2016)
Thesis:   Breeding and brood rearing ecology of Mottled Ducks in the Ashepoo, Combahee, and Edisto Rivers Basin, South Carolina (2016)
Current Position:  Wildlife Biologist, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
Location:  SC

Jennifer P. Kross

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2003-2006)
Current Position:  Regional Biologist, Ducks Unlimited Great Plains Regional Office
Location:  Bismarck, ND

Joe Lancaster

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2013)
Thesis:   Survival, habitat use, and spatiotemporal use of wildlife management areas by female mallards in Mississippi�s Alluvial Valley (2013)
Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2018)
Dissertation:   Winter ecology of radiomarked female Mallards in Mississippi�s Alluvial Valley (2018)
Advisor:  Brian Davis
Current Position:  Postdoctoral Research Associate, The Illinois Natural History Survey
Location:  IL

Alan Leach

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2011)
Thesis:   Red Oak Acorn Production, Mass, and Gross Energy Dynamics in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Current Position:  Ph.D. student, University of Nevada
Location:  Reno, NE

Charles R. Loesch

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1986-1988)
Current Position:  Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Bismarck, ND

Marisel Lopez-Florez

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2002-2005)
Advisor:  Richard Kaminski and Francisco Vilella
Current Position:  Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  San Juan, PR

Dr. Scott Manley

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (1994-1998)
Current Position:  Director of Conservation Programs, Ducks Unlimited Southern Regional Office
Location:  Jackson, MS

Joe Marty

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2013)
Thesis:   Seed and waterbird abundances in ricelands in the Gulf Coast Prairies of Louisiana and Texas (2013)
Degree:   Ph.D. Degree (2017)
Dissertation:   Estimates of waste rice, natural seeds, and wetland birds in Gulf Coast Prairie ricelands during fall�winter (2017)
Advisor:  Brian Davis
Current Position:  Biological Supervisor/Research Coordinator, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Location:  Rockefeller Refuge, LA

Kira Monroe

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2014)
Thesis:   Survival and habit selection of American Black Ducks in Tennessee (2014)
Current Position:  Monitoring Coordinator, Hummingbird Monitoring Network
Location:  Fort Collins, CO

Dr. Aaron T. Pearse

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2002-2007)
Current Position:  Research Wildlife Biologist, Northern Prairie Research Station, U.S. Geological Survey
Location:  Jamestown, ND

Edward Penny

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2001-2003)
Current Position:  Chief of Wildlife (Wetlands), Mississippi Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Parks
Location:  Jackson, MS

Tom Peterson

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2014)
Thesis:   Wintering waterfowl use of Delta National Forest, Mississippi (2014)
Current Position:  Regional Biologist
Location:  Fort Collins, Colorado

David M. Richardson

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1987-1989)
Current Position:  Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Grenada, MS

Dr. Michael Schummer

Degree:  Post-doc (2007-2010)
Current Position:  Research Scientist, Long Point Waterfowl (Bird Studies Canada)
Location:  Long Point, Ontario

David E. Sherman

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1988-1990)
Current Position:  Biologist, Division of Wildlife, Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Location:  Columbus, OH

Clay Shipes

Degree:  M.S. Student (2014)
Thesis:   Aspects of the ecology and management of mottled ducks in Coastal South Carolina (2014)
Advisor:  Brian Davis
Current Position:  Wildlife Biologist (Natural Resource Specialist), J. D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area
Location:  Port Arthur, TX

Amy Spencer

Degree:  M.S. Degree, Ph.D. Degree (2003-2014)
Thesis:   Habitat Characteristics and Fish Assemblage Structure of Deep Pools in the Upper Tombigbee River, Mississippi
Current Position:

Elizabeth St. James

Degree:  M.S. Student (2011)
Thesis:   Effect Of Hunting Frequency On Duck Abundance, Harvest, And Hunt Quality In Mississippi
Advisor:  Richard Kaminski and Michael Schummer
Current Position:  Ph.D. student, University of Illinois
Location:  Champaign-Urbana, IL

Dr. Joshua D. Stafford

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2001-2005)
Current Position:  Assistant Unit Leader, South Dakota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, South Dakota State University
Location:  Brookings, SD

Victoria Starnes

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2021)
Advisor:  Dr. Mike Colvin
Current Position:

Scott Stephens

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1992-1995)
Advisor:  Bruce Leopold and Richard Kaminski
Current Position:  Director of Conservation, Ducks Unlimited-Canada
Location:  Oak Hammock, Manitoba

Jake Straub

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (2008-2012)
Thesis:   Estimating and Modeling Red Oak Acorn Yield and Abundance in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Current Position:  Assistant Professor, Environmental Science/Ecology
Location:  State University of New York-Plattsburgh

Adam Tullos

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2000)
Advisor:  Richard Kaminski and Stephen Grado
Current Position:  Mississippi State University Extension
Location:  Verona, MS

Dr. Bill W. Uihlein, III

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (1993-2000)
Current Position:  Assistant Regional Director, Region 4, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Atlanta, GA

Josh Vest

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1999-2002)
Current Position:  Science Coordinator, Intermountain West Joint Venture, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Missoula, MT

Dr. Mark P. Vrtiska

Degree:  Ph.D. Degree (1995)
Current Position:  Waterfowl Program Manager, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
Location:  Lincoln, NE

Mitch Weegman

Degree:  B.S. Degree (2010)
Current Position:  Ph.D. student, University of Exeter
Location:  Exeter, England

Matt Weegman

Degree:  M.S. Degree (2011-2013)
Thesis:   Waterbird and Seed Abundances in Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative and Non-Managed Wetlands in Mississippi and Louisiana
Advisor:  Rick Kaminski
Current Position:  Biologist, Ducks Unlimited
Location:  Rancho Cordova, CA

Brett Wehrle

Degree:  M.S. Degree (1990-1992)
Current Position:  Refuge Manager, Central Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Location:  Marksville, LA

Alicia J. Wiseman

Degree:  B.S. Degree, M.S. Degree (2006-2009)
Thesis:   Waterfowl foods and use in managed grain sorghum and other habitats in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Current Position:  Biologist, Ducks Unlimited, South Louisiana Field Station
Location:  Lafayette, LA

Dan Zekor

Degree:  Research Assistant (1985-1987)
Current Position:  Federal Aid Coordinator, Missouri Department of Conservation
Location:  Columbia, MO