Kristen Bretz
Assistant Director
The Assistant Director of Undergraduate Research is Dr. Kristen Bretz. She has a B.A. in Biology and Philosophy from Wake Forest University, a M.S. in Environmental Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Ph.D. in Biology from Virginia Tech. After getting her M.S., Kristen worked for U.S. Fish and Wildlife ‘s Kenai field office in Alaska. She then spent many years working with USDA Veterinary Services and Iowa State University on foreign animal disease policy and emergency response. She has also worked as an editor with BioResources and with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. During her Ph.D. research at Virginia Tech, Kristen studied carbon cycling in headwater stream networks in light of climate change and changes in stream drying. Kristen loved working with undergraduate researchers as part of her doctoral program, and brings that experience to her role with the Office of Undergraduate Research.
Education
- B.A., Biology and Philosophy, Wake Forest University
- M.S., Environmental Science and Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Ph.D., Biology, Virginia Tech