2022 Holden Summer Intern Program

June 3, 2022

Over the past few weeks, Holden Forests and Gardens has excitedly welcomed the 2022 cohort of interns into the Research, Community Forestry, Conservation, Horticulture, and Collections departments. This summer, interns from each department will gain hands on experience in their respective fields, participate in professional development training, and enjoy the wonderful natural areas of Holden! Their experiences will culminate at the end of the summer at the annual Symposium for Ecological Research (SEARCH) when each intern will present a poster on their individual projects. We started the summer off with a tour of the David G. Leach Research Station in Madison, Ohio, where scientist Connor Ryan gave us an inside look at ornamental plant breeding and the beautiful Rhododendron collection.

This summer, the research department is lucky to have seven interns with diverse backgrounds and research interests. Below, we highlight each intern’s background and focus for the summer.

Alexa Busby

Alexa is a rising sophomore at the College of William and Mary, double majoring in Biology and Environmental Science. She is working with Dr. David Burke exploring mycorrhizal fungi relationships with trees in response to acid deposition.

Jillian Bastock

Jillian is a master’s student at Cleveland State University, pursuing a masters in Environmental Science. She is working with Annie Rzepka Budziak, Lori Gogolin, and Dawn Gerlica from the Horticulture department and Dr. Katie Stuble exploring the impacts of different garden management strategies on the plant and pollinator community.

Keely McQuain

Keely is a rising junior at Ohio State University majoring in Plant Pathology with a minor in Horticulture. She is working with Connor Ryan exploring rhododendron breeding to develop resistance to root rot and rhododendron collection curation.

Lydia Jahn

Lydia is a 2022 graduate from Case Western Reserve University with a degree in Biology and Environmental Studies. She is working with Dr. Katie Stuble and Alexa Wagner exploring the impacts of forest management on tree and shrub seedling recruitment and survival.

Maris Hollowell

Maris is a 2022 graduate from the University of Findlay with a degree in Forensic Biology. She is working with Dr. Na Wei exploring the microbiome of disease resistant versus disease susceptible crabapple species.

Sabeel Haddad

Sabeel is a rising sophomore at Ohio State University, majoring in biology. She is working with Dr. Juliana Medeiros exploring the distribution and expansion of Eastern Red Cedar and Rhododendron physiological responses to environmental variation.

Sofia Green

Sofia is a 2022 graduate from Lewis and Clark College with a degree in Biology. She is working with Dr. Katie Stuble exploring the impacts of forest management on the diversity and composition of the plant community.

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