WHO WE ARE
TX SWMS is a state wide chapter of the Society for Women in Marine Science. made up of marine scientists across all career levels and many different institutions. We have members spanning academic, industry, and government careers and are constantly growing our community.
90+
members
FACULTY/STAFF
GRAD STUDENT
UNDERGRAD STUDENT
PROFESSIONAL
POSTDOC
WHERE WE ARE
NORTH TEXAS
University of Texas at Arlington
University of Dallas
University of North Texas
University of Texas at Tyler
CENTRAL TEXAS
University of Texas at Austin
Texas State University
University of Texas at San Antonio
Texas A&M
EAST TEXAS
Rice University
University of Houston Clear Lake
Texas A&M Galveston
Moody Gardens
NOAA Flower Garden Banks
SOUTH TEXAS
Texas A&M Corpus Christi
UT Marine Science Institute
UT Rio Grande Valley
Texas Parks and Wildlife
CHAPTER GOALS
1
NETWORKING, COLLABORATION, & COMMUNITY
One of our top priorities as a chapter is to create a network and community of women marine scientists across the state to enable collaboration and knowledge sharing amongst our group. Through building this network we aim to connect scientists with resources across the state to improve and promote all of our science!
2
3
4
5
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & SKILL DEVELOPMENT
Our chapter will provide professional development and skill development to members across all career stages. We plan to gather resources from the group and organize in-person and remote workshops to address topics of interest including identifying career paths, building CVs/resumes, interview tips, bioinformatic workshops, and more.
MENTORSHIP & SPONSORSHIP
Mentorship comes in many different forms at every career stage. As a chapter, we will build and provide resources for identifying mentors and sponsors at different career stages and will generate resources on how to be a good mentor for students across all backgrounds.
OPPORTUNITIES & CAREER EXPLORATION
As a statewide chapter, we have branched beyond academic institutions to involve individuals across academia, government, industry, and more. By encompassing all of these fields, we will expose members of our chapter to a wide diversity of career paths and will help connect members to a wide array of research opportunities at varying career levels across the state.
OUTREACH
Texas is a large state, which provides us with a great opportunity to connect with a wide range of diverse communities through outreach events. Through hosting outreach events with local communities, zoos, aquariums, and more, we can promote the great marine science research taking place across this state and hopefully increase the participation of underrepresented groups in marine science.
Leadership Team
Erin Borbee
Postdoc
Texas State University
PRESIDENT
Erin is currently an NSF postdoc fellow in the Fuess Lab at Texas State. Her research focuses on understanding tradeoffs between energetics and immunity associated with microbial symbioses in corals. Outside of the lab, she enjoys SCUBA, knitting/crocheting, soccer, and all things Boston sports!
Hannah Rempel
PhD Candidate
UT Marine Science Institute
TREASURER
Hannah is a PhD Candidate in the Casey Lab at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute. Her research focuses on how local-scale human stressors can alter the trophic interactions of coastal fishes and invertebrates using behavioral, molecular and isotopic techniques. She also enjoys developing educational outreach materials and scientific illustration.
Alexandra Good
PhD Candidate
Texas A&M Corpus Christi
VICE PRESIDENT
Alex is a Ph.D. candidate at TAMU-CC from Cape Cod, MA. She received a B.Sc. in Marine Science and a M.Sc. in Marine Studies from the University of Delaware. Between degrees, Alex taught 8th grade science where she discovered a passion for teaching and science communication. Her dissertation focuses on understanding how oyster reefs and coral reefs are impacted by environmental change, and providing educational tools to the communities that rely on these ecosystems. In her free time, she is a die-hard Boston sports fan and enjoys traveling to scuba dive, snowboard, hike, or just relax with a good book and enjoy mother nature.
Ingrid Bunholi
PhD Student
UT Marine Science Institute
COMMUNICATIONS CHAIR
Ingrid Bunholi is a marine scientist that came all the way from Brazil to purse her PhD at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute. Her work is centered in applying different genetic tools such as environmental DNA/RNA, microbiome analysis, and population genomics to understand spatiotemporal variation of coral reef and coastal fish communities across diverse environmental conditions and biogeographical patterns.
Sofia Diaz de Villegas
PhD Student
Texas State University
SECRETARY
Originally from Miami, FL, Sofia received her B.A. in Biological Sciences and Environmental Studies from Wellesley College in 2017 before returning to Miami to work in the Coral Reef Futures Lab. She moved to Texas in 2021 to pursue an M.S. in the Fuess Lab at Texas State studying the impacts of heat stress on the disease susceptibility of stony corals. She is continuing this work as a PhD student where she hopes to integrate her research with education and outreach. Her work with SWMS will aim to increase resources and accessibility in the marine sciences to underrepresented communities.
Kerri Lynn Ackerly
Research Associate
UT Marine Science Institute
MENTORSHIP CHAIR
Kerri Lynn is a Research Scientist at the University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute. She studies the physiological impacts of climate change and toxicants on fishes important in the Gulf of Mexico.
Keisha Bahr
Assistant Professor
Texas A&M Corpus Christi
CAREER DEVELOPMENT CHAIR
Dr. Keisha Bahr is a coral reef ecologist and an Assistant Professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. She is interested in understanding how corals and coral reefs react and adapt to environmental change. Her research seeks to reveal insights into ecosystem health and resilience while providing practical solutions to managers, policymakers, and communities. For more than a decade, she has collaborated with academic, government, non-governmental institutions, and local communities to develop the knowledge and tools to restore, preserve, and manage our coral reef ecosystems.
Isabella Changsut
PhD Student
Texas State University
OUTREACH CHAIR
Issy is currently a PhD student in the Fuess lab at Texas State after recently completing her Masters in the same lab. Her Master’s thesis focused on the interplay between immunity and symbiosis in the facultatively symbiotic coral Astrangia poculata. For her PhD, she will be working on investigating the capacity for immunological priming in corals. Prior to graduate school, she earned a B.S. in Marine Biology and minors in Public Health and Spanish from Roger Williams University. Outside of research, Issy enjoys working out and reading.