Iowa State Alumni Sam Albee (’21 Animal Ecology and Biology), and Ethan Rose (’20, Biology and Animal Ecology) have been awarded the NSF GRFP (National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship) which recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported STEM disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited US institutions. The five-year fellowship includes three years of financial support including an annual stipend of $34,000 and a cost of education allowance of $12,000 to the institution.

For Sam’s graduate studies, she will be heading to Pennsylvania State in the fall to study seed dispersal networks in Brazil. Ethan is a doctoral student at Marquette University researching drought sensitivity in grasslands and the GRFP will allow him to expand his study sites and lead community science outreach in Milwaukee.

Both Sam and Ethan were part of Dr. Haldre Roger’s Lab throughout their undergraduate studies at Iowa state and credit her to playing a large part in their journeys.