Cassandra J Wattenburger 1407 S Grand Ave A Ames, IA,

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1 Cassandra J Wattenburger 1407 S Grand Ave A Ames, IA, cjwattenburger@gmail.com Education Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA B.S. and Minor in Cellular and Molecular Biology and Chemistry respectively, March 2014 (through the Honors Program) GPA: 3.83, cum laude Kamiakin High School, Kennewick, WA High School Diploma, June 2010 GPA: 4.00, Valedictorian Research Skills Sterile technique Media/solution preparation Inoculation and plating DNA and RNA extraction from culture and soil cdna synthesis Gel electrophoresis Ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis Bacterial transformation and cloning EPS extraction Enzyme assays Fungal spore collection and enumeration Gas chromatography Agilent Bioanalyzer Boreal Genomics Aurora System QIAcube Experimental design and protocol troubleshooting Scientific presentation Research Experience Iowa State University, Ames, IA Research Associate, Jan-present 2015 Conducted research investigating microbial activity and community composition in soils from the SPRUCE, COBS, and Marsden experimental sites. Assisted in manuscript review for scientific papers and management of an academic lab. Research conducted under the supervision of Dr. Kirsten Hofmockel WWU Biology Department, Bellingham, WA Research Assistant, Spring 2013 Assisted in research investigating the genetic basis of Arabidopsis thaliana resistance to Aspergillus fungi using single mutant knock-out strains of the suspect pathway in infection assays. Research conducted under the supervision of Dr. Marion Brodhagen. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, Mentor: Vanessa Bailey Technical Intern, Summer 2013 Prepared and conducted an experiment assaying microbial community composition and EPS due to temperature change using soil enrichment cultures

2 subjected to gradual and sharp temperature increases over the course of ten weeks. SULI Intern, Summer 2012 Began development of a convenient and economic method of extracting DNA from single soil aggregates with high enough yield to be used in community profiling assays. Single aggregates are hypothesized to contain a population of microorganisms more representative of a discrete community. SULI Intern, Summer 2011 Recreated an experiment conducted ten years previously that measured fungal to bacterial activity ratios as a function of evolved CO2 from agricultural, restored prairie, and farmed prairie soils to develop a better understanding of how soil activities change over long periods of time under different management. YWIS Intern, Summer 2010 Assisted with preliminary research for various environmental microbiology projects and learned basic laboratory skills; oversaw growth of several soil bacteria isolate cultures for discovery of species capable of cellobiose degradation and optimal growth conditions, conducted preliminary runs with titration and enzyme assay procedures, and assisted in experimental set-up. Non-research Lab Experience Columbia Crest Winery, Patterson, WA Lab Technician, August 2014 October 2014 Sampled and analyzed juice samples taken from ripening grapes during harvesting season and tracked juice fermentation. Assisted in general lab upkeep and coordinating workload under tight time constraints. Lab supervisor: Tony Hoffman. Teaching Experience Undergraduate TA for Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology Lab, Winter Helped students understand concepts and protocols and lectured on basic lab techniques in microbiology. Western Washington University. Abstracts Wattenburger CJ, and VL Bailey "Studying individual soil aggregates as discrete habitats for microbial communities." Abstract submitted to SULI program. PNNL-SA Wattenburger CJ, SJ Fansler, and VL Bailey "Revisiting fungal-to-bacterial activity ratios in soils ten years later." Abstract submitted to SULI Intern Poster Session, Richland, WA. PNNL-SA

3 Posters and Presentations Wattenburger CJ Soil Microorganisms, Climate Change, and Soil Quality Presented by Cassi Wattenburger at Western Washington University through the Honors Program on March 22, Wattenburger CJ Seeing through the Ice Presented by Cassi Wattenburger (Invited Speaker) at Whatcom Museum on February 20, Wattenburger CJ, and VL Bailey "Studying individual soil aggregates as discrete habitats for microbial communities." Presented by Cassi Wattenburger (Invited Speaker) at SULI Symposium on August 15, PNNL-SA Wattenburger CJ, SJ Fansler, and VL Bailey "Revisiting fungal-to-bacterial activity ratios in soils ten years later." Presented by Cassi Wattenburger (Invited Speaker) at PNNL SULI Poster Session, Richland, WA on August 11, PNNL-SA Manuscripts Wattenburger CJ Soil Microorganisms, Climate Change, and Soil Quality Western Washington University Honors Program. Western Library Electronic Library, Bellingham, WA. Wattenburger CJ and Bailey VL "Studying individual soil aggregates as discrete habitats for microbial communities." PNNL-SA Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA. Outreach and Extracurricular Activities Science Night Volunteer. March Engaged K-5th grade students with concepts in microbiology through an after-school event. Lead a Build-a-bacteria station. Gertrude Fellows Elementary School, Ames, IA. Eco Day Science Fair Judge. March 9th Judged a middle-school science fair where students researched an ecosystem and presented on the food-web and human-impacts. Nevada Middle School, Nevada, IA. Hanford C, Robbins B, Wattenburger CJ. March Breathe. Ecological art depicting soil respiration and its impact on atmospheric carbon dioxide. Clay, soil, moss, twigs. Western Gallery, Bellingham, WA. Science Club Teacher. January March Lead an after-school club for gradeschool children. The goal was to create a fun and exciting environment for children to become interested in the sciences. Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Bellingham, WA. Awards and Honors WWU Admission with Highest Honors President's Scholarship (Western Washington University, )

4 Hodgson Family Scholarship ( ) John and Elizabeth Moore Education Scholarship (Western Washington University, ) College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Presidential Fellowship (Iowa State University, ) Diane Brandt Scholarship (Iowa State University, 2015) Professional Organizations Association of Women in Science (Member ) Association of Women in Science Western Washington University Affiliate Group (Member , Budget Authority , Vice President ) Microbiology Graduate Student Organization, Iowa State University (Member February 2015-present) Practical Farmers of Iowa (Member May 2015-present) International Society of Microbial Ecology (Member June 2015-present) Relevant Coursework Cellular and Molecular Biology: Cell structure and function including protein structure and function, gene regulation, cell cycle, signal transduction, and organelle assembly and function. (4 credits), 2012 Methods in Molecular Biology: Introduction to widely used molecular biology techniques and laboratory skills including gel electrophoresis, PCR, ligation, and bacterial transformation. (3 credits), 2012 Organic Chemistry series: Chemistry of carbon compounds including structure, reactions, mechanisms, and interpreting data from infrared spectrometry and NMR. (11 credits total), 2012 Organic Chemistry Lab: Techniques in compound separation such as various chromatography methods, purification, NMR, and various reaction methods (3 credits), 2012 Genetics: Survey of classical genetics, molecular genetics, and genomics in eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms. (4 credits), 2012 Genetics Lab: Use of prokaryotic and eukaryotic model organisms including E. coli, C. elegans, A. thaliana, and N. vitripennis to explore the fundamentals of genetics and the use of genetics as a tool for basic research. (4 credits), 2013 Functional Genomics: Examination of the development and application of genomebased experimental approaches in biology with emphasis on analysis of primary literature. (3 credits), 2013 Evolutionary Biology: Principles, patterns, processes and mechanisms of evolution. (4 credits), 2013 Developmental Biology of Plants: Examination of the molecular basis of plant development and the use of recent discoveries on crop improvement strategies with emphasis on discussion of primary literature. (3 credits), 2013 Fundamentals of Microbiology: Cell structure, metabolism, evolution, and ecology of prokaryotes. (3 credits), 2014 Microbiology Lab: Techniques of general microbiology, including isolation, culture, enumeration, and identification of prokaryotes. (2 credits), 2014

5 Biochemistry I: In depth analysis of the structure and function of biological macromolecules, intermediary metabolism, membrane structure and function, and bioenergetics. (4 credits), 2014 Biochemistry II: Comprehensive study of the function of macromolecules, membrane function, and metabolisms and their regulation. (4 credits), 2014

6 References Vanessa Bailey, Ph.D. Senior Research Scientist Research Mentor Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Phone: Sarah Fansler, M.S. Scientist Research Mentor Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Phone: Michael Wilkins, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Ohio State University Phone: