As an undergraduate, Jennifer Goyette was a hard-working Environmental Earth Science major whose work in the classroom gained the attention of Assistant Professor Timothy Schroeder. He encouraged her to take on an independent research project, and soon Jennifer found herself in the field studying the Mesozoic Eastern Border Fault. She gained more hands-on experience during a summer in Laramie, WY, at the University of Wyoming (UW) geology field camp, where Jennifer fell in love with western geology and culture.
With her successful work in the classroom and the field, Professor Schroeder suggested that Jennifer consider applying to graduate schools. She hadn’t given it much thought before, but remembered how much she loved field school and decided to apply to the University of Wyoming.
“Twenty-four hours after graduating from Eastern in spring 2008, I flew to Wyoming to help teach their summer geology field course,” said Jennifer, who began her master’s work in structural geology at UW in fall 2008.
Jennifer soon noticed that she had more experience than many of her peers, as she had already worked independently at Eastern and had presented her research findings at national meetings. Her current thesis research has sent her to the Mojave Desert, southeastern California and western Arizona. She has applied for and received grant funding, and has twice traveled to California to present the preliminary results of her research at a national geologic meeting.
She credits Eastern for fostering her drive and curiosity, which continues to grow as additional opportunities unfold. “The entire Environmental Earth Science department was wonderful and very excited about what they do. It is infectious,” she said.
