PEOPLE
Jay Zambito
Associate Professor of Geology, Beloit College
Jay’s research focuses on identifying and characterizing climatically-induced extinction events recorded in the Paleozoic rock record using a combination of paleontology, geochemistry, stratigraphy, sedimentology, and fluid inclusion analysis. His other interests include taphonomy (the process of fossil preservation) and paleontological curation. He has also studied the geochemistry and mineralogy of Cambrian-age frac sand deposits in Wisconsin in order to understand the potential environmental impacts of sand mining.
Kelsey Engelke
2023-present
Project:
Current Status of the Paleontological Collection at Beloit College
Geneva Helland
2023-present
Senior Thesis:
Investigating the Utility of Environmental Proxies for TOC and Natural Gamma Radiation in the Devonian Shale of the Illinois basin
Isabel Johnson
2021-present
Isabel started in the Beloit Paleo Lab as a research assistant on the ACS PRF-funded Appalachian Basin black shale project and is now undertaking her senior thesis as part of a Keck Geology Consortium Project.
Senior Thesis:
Characterizing the Ellsworth Formation of the Michigan Basin using Litho- and Chemostratigraphy
Jack Collier
2021-present
Jack started in the Beloit Paleo Lab as a research assistant and is now undertaking his senior thesis.
Senior Thesis:
Determining the Origin of Paleo-Indian Artifacts from Wisconsin, USA
Gabe DuRussel
2021-present
Gabe started in the Beloit Paleo Lab as a research assistant and is now undertaking his senior thesis.
Senior Thesis:
Interpreting Geochemical Proxies in Illinois Basin Devonian Black Shale
Olivia Farbarik
2019-2023
Olivia started in the Beloit Paleo Lab during her first year at Beloit College, and we were fortunate that she continued to work with us throughout her time at Beloit!
Senior Thesis:
Using the A-12 Drill Core (Bullitt County, KY) to Interpret Devonian Carbon Cycle Dynamics
Conference Abstracts:
Emma May
2022-2023
Senior Thesis:
Beloit College La Brea Tar Pit Fossil Collection Taxonomy and Taphonomy: Insights into Predation
Post-Beloit:
Emma currently works in Saguaro National Park in Tucson, AZ on the wildland fire crew.
Daniel Bolin
2022-2023
Senior Thesis:
Litho- and Chemostratigraphic Reconstruction of the New Albany Shale (SDH-273 core, Indianapolis, IN)
Anna Weldon
2021-2023
Senior Thesis:
The Impact of Forest Evolution on the Organic Matter Composition of Illinois Basin Devonian Black Shale
Conference Abstracts:
Post-Beloit:
Anna is currently a master's student at the University of Kansas. Her thesis is focused on using carbon isotope chemostratigraphy to reconstruct Early Cretaceous paleoclimate recorded in the Kootenai Formation of Western Montana.
Laura Hughson
2021-2022
Senior Thesis:
Local and Regional Patterns of Marine Black Shale Organic Matter in the Devonian Appalachian Basin
Conference Abstracts:
Morgan Fries
2020-2021
Senior Thesis:
The Reliability of Outcrops for Organic Geochemical Data: A Case Study Using Devonian Black Shales
Conference Abstracts:
Walker Weyland
2019-2021
Senior Thesis:
Determining the Direction of Early Trilobite Environmental Migration
Post-Beloit:
Walker is currently a master's student in the Droser PaleoEcology lab at the University of California, Riverside studying variability across the most mature ecosystems of the Ediacaran Period in the Ediacara Hills of South Australia.
Delaney McCarthy
2020-2021
Senior Thesis:
Devonian Organic Matter Variability within the Appalachian Basin
Conference Abstracts:
Post-Beloit:
Delaney is currently a GIS Technician at Invenergy.
Maddie Holicky
2019-2021
Maddie joined the lab at the beginning of our ACS PRF-funded Appalachian Basin black shale project. She helped develop the methods we used and collected and analyzed some of the initial samples for the project.
Conference Abstracts:
Post-Beloit:
Maddie is a Project Geologist at TRC Companies.
Emily Clinkscales
2019-2021
Emily joined the lab at the beginning of our ACS PRF-funded Appalachian Basin black shale project. She helped develop the methods we used and collected and analyzed some of the initial samples for the project.
Conference Abstracts:
Post-Beloit:
Emily is currently undertaking her MS degree in Geology at the University of Wyoming, studying the geochemistry of CO2-fluid-rock interactions.
Andy Rich
2019-2020
Senior Thesis:
Taphonomy and Biodiversity of Fish Fossils from the Middle Devonian Milwaukee Formation
Publications:
2022 Rich and Zambito, PALAIOS
Conference Abstracts:
Post-Beloit:
In 2023, Andy earned a MS degree in Paleontology from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSMT); his thesis focused on mosasaur taphonomy in the Pierre Shale. He is currently working at the Montana Dinosaur Center.
Zowie Fox
2019-2020
Senior Thesis:
Reconstructing the Cambrian Carbon Cycle Using ~500 million-year-old Phosphatic Brachiopods
Conference Abstracts:
Philippe Rollet
2019-2020
Senior Thesis:
Constraining the Depositional Environment of Triassic Halite from the Röt Basin, Netherlands
Jennifer Pantelios
2018-2019
Senior Thesis:
Implications of Cambrian sandstone phosphorus runoff on eutrophic waters, Dunn County, WI
Post-Beloit:
Jennifer worked as a Gardening Instructor at the nonprofit After School Matters where she developed hands-on apprenticeship programs for teens with a focus on sustainable and ecologically centered gardening activities. She is currently pursuing her passion for education as an Assistant Teacher at a Montessori School.
Christine Shonnard
2018-2019
Senior Thesis:
Evaluating cycles in distal floodplain deposition within the Early Paleogene Hanna Basin, Wyoming, U.S.A.
Publications:
2019 Shonnard et al., Keck Geology Consortium Short Contributions
Conference Abstracts:
2019 SC-NS-RM GSA Manhattan, KS
Post-Beloit:
After graduating from Beloit College, Christine worked as a Physical Scientist at the EPA. She then spent some time climbing volcanoes in Mexico, and is now working as an outdoor teacher in Chicago.