Kristen Peach
​PhD Candidate
University of California Santa Barbara

   
Kristen Peach
Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology
kpeach@umail.ucsb.edu
    

   
EDUCATION:

GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS:

​2018

GiGa Science $1,000
California NanoSystems Institute $9,000 
UCSB Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology Research Grant $1,000 

2016

Paul Silva Student Research Grant (California Botanical Society) $1,000 
Worster Award for Graduate and Undergraduate Research $5,000
Graduate Student Research Fellowship from the Institute for the Study of Ecological and Evolutionary Climate Impacts (ISEECI) $13,011  
UCSB Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology Block Grant  $6,000 
Academic Senate Grant (UCSB) $6,800

2015

Mildred E. Mathias Graduate Student Research Grant $3,000

2013

UCSB Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology Block Grant  $12,000
 


HONORS AND AWARDS:
Sigma Xi Associate Member 
Worster Award
Graduate Student Excellence in Teaching Award (Nominated)
NSF Graduate Student Fellowship Honorable Mention
National Honor Society
Political Science Honors Society
Phi Betta Kappa
    
University of California Santa Barbara 2013-present
PhD Candidate- Research and Teaching Assistant
Advisor: Dr. Susan Mazer
Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology

The Certificate in College and University Teaching (CCUT)
Advisors: Dr. Tom Even and Dr. Mindy Colin

University of California Santa Barbara 2013-2017
Master of Arts
Advisor: Dr. Susan Mazer
Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology

Columbia University 2011-2012
Post Baccalaureate Certificate Program
Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Science

The University of Vermont 2008-2011
Bachelor of Arts, (Honors) College of Art and Sciences
Political Science (International Relations)
Environmental Studies (Environmental Policy and Development)

Universidad de Buenos Aires 2009-2010
Human Rights Movements
Spanish

   
CONFERENCES AND PRESENTATIONS:

2017
Ecological Society of America 
California Botanical Society Graduate Symposium
Worster Symposium (UCSB) 

:RELATED EXPERIENCE
Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics (ConGen) - Participant
2018
10-day intensive course in methods, interpretation, and applications of molecular genetic analyses for conservation of endangered species, Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics

Teaching Associate 
2018
University of California Santa Barbara 
Instructor of Record for Plant Biology and Biodiversity lecture course
 
Field Work and Plant Biology Research 
2013- present
University of California Santa Barbara 
Designed and implemented field studies in the UC Reserve Network and California State Parks and Wildlands to address thesis research questions regarding geographic and ontogenetic variation in floral traits in an annual wildflower
   
Teaching Assistant 
2013-present
University of California Santa Barbara 
Reinvented curriculum for inquiry based learning in discussion sections, labs and field courses for multiple undergraduate courses: Plant biology and biodiversity lecture (4 quarters) and lab (4 quarters) and Introduction to ecology (3 quarters).
 
California Phenology Network Volunteer/ Docent Training
2013-2016
Assisted Dr. Susan Mazer in multiple educational workshops and training sessions across California.
 
Project Baseline: A Seedbank to Study Plant Evolution - Seed Collector
2014-2015
Conducted environmental site visits and assessments, collected seeds and data for Project Baseline, a multi-university collaboration that aims to preserve genetic biodiversity and study evolution in wild species across the U.S.
    
United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service
Biological Science Technician
2012-2013
Designing and conducting field and lab research in community ecology and biological control programs. (Specialist invertebrates, germination studies etc.)

The University of Vermont
Teaching Assistant: International Environmental Studies
2010-2011
Designed and implemented curriculum for two sets of lab groups every week in addition to supplying assistance for the lecture portion of the course.

The Sierra Club (San Francisco Bay Chapter)
Community Outreach and Political Organizing Intern  
2010
Performed a wide array of campaign responsibilities Customized and led various community mobilization efforts Represented the organization at political and community events.

   
The University of Vermont
Juristic Democracy Project- Lead Undergraduate Researcher
2009-2010
Advanced a 5-year research project at the University of Vermont regarding deliberative democracy, environmental policy and international jurisprudence. Designed and implemented the projects coding system, data recording processes and data analysis models. Led group think tanks and simulations.
 
The University of Vermont- The Center for Rural Studies
Research Assistant
2008-2009
Worked on projects involving natural resource issues in the state of Vermont. Research, collection of data, statistical analysis, transcribing and coding of focus group information to contribute to U.S Census Data and provide extension services.

  
RELEVANT COURSE WORK:

2018

Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics (ConGen)
American Genetics Association 
10-day intensive course in methods, interpretation, and applications of molecular genetic analyses for conservation of endangered species
 
Summer Teaching Institute for Associates
University of California Santa Barbara Graduate Division 
A program that provides graduate student Teaching Associates with a teaching orientation that helps prepare them for teaching as the Instructor of Record in Summer session.
 
Advanced Data Analysis (ESM 244)
University of California Santa Barbara 
Explored advanced topics in data science and used computer labs to apply our knowledge and skills in R.  Topics include: bootstrapping, non-linear models, panel regression, path analysis, dimensional reduction + ordination methods, binary, ordinal and multinomial logistic regression, intro to time-series analysis, introduction to spatial statistics and analysis (exploration, visualization, organization, analysis, interpretation, and communication). 
 
2017

Statistics and Data Science in Environmental Science and Management (ESM 266)
University of California Santa Barbara 
Developed critical thinking, technical and communication skills to successfully approach and answer environmental questions using quantitative and qualitative data. Topics include: descriptive statistics, experimental design, uncertainty, exploratory data analysis, basic probability theory, hypothesis testing, data visualization and communication. Skills will be developed through analysis of real-world datasets using R and RStudio software.

2013
 
DNA Barcoding Project
University of California Santa Barbara 
Learned and implemented DNA extraction methods for low volume plant tissue samples, PCR reactions, how to analyze DNA sequences and generate DNA barcodes using the DNA Subway web site.
 
RELEVANT OUTREACH
WiSE (Women in Stem and Engineering): Committee Member & Mentor