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Featured Student: Summer 2009

Marissa Jablonski

Marissa Jablonski’s passion for learning and teaching about the world’s environment has taken her to the Black Forest of Germany, water treatment plants in Austria, the mountains and rivers of the Czech Republic, water reservoirs in Poland, and the fisheries of Iceland. She labored alongside locals in northwestern Spain cleaning up the Prestige Oil spill. She assisted the study of the impact of heavy metals on forests around Krakow. She taught at the Chugach National Forest in Portage, Alaska and studied soils, water, plants, animals, and forestry at the Central Wisconsin Environmental Station. And that was just as an undergraduate at UW-Stevens Point.

Her double majors of Spanish and resource management—she earned scholarships and honors in both—served her well in Spain, as well as during her civil engineering master’s studies at UWM, when she traveled in 2007 and 2008 to Quejchip, Guatemala with the UWM chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB@UWM) to construct a spring-fed water supply system. "This was a terrific opportunity to get real-world engineering experience while helping a community in need," she told Milwaukee Engineer magazine in 2008.

Her writing about building trust among the people of the impoverished community won recognition from the International Division of the American Society for Engineering Education.

Back on campus, Marissa has excelled academically, earning a 2008 Wisconsin Water Association Scholarship and a Chancellor's Graduate Student Awards for 2007 and 2008.

Last month, Marissa received her M.S. with an emphasis on environmental engineering, and will continue at UWM toward her Ph.D. Her current research project is a collaboration between the departments of Civil Engineering and Biological Sciences.

Marissa has been co-chair of EWB@UWM since 2007 and is a 2008-2010 delegate to the Wisconsin Conservation Congress.

1) How would you describe your field of study/research to a friend who is not in your graduate program?

I study bacteria (specifically e. coli) transport through porous media. Basically I pump bacteria through a column packed with glass beads. This simulates contaminated rainwater carrying bacteria through soil. I test how much of the bacteria sticks to the “soil” and where it sticks. My specific study helps us figure out, in the case of an E. coli outbreak, how the E. coli travels through the soil and whether or not we should worry about it reaching our groundwater or any other threatening places.

2) What brought you to UWM for your graduate studies?

I am originally from the suburbs of Milwaukee. During my undergraduate degree I traveled all over Europe and the US and although I had some amazing life-changing experiences, I figured out that I need to recognize my roots. And since I really enjoy my family and have fun when we are together, it was more than a good idea to move back to Milwaukee. There are at least three major engineering universities in Milwaukee, and quite honestly, I have always liked UWM for what it brings to this city. So, when my advisor told me that she could offer me funding for a master’s degree, i decided to go for it.

3) What's been your best experience so far?

I love learning and thinking. I would have to say the best experience so far has been the realization that I get paid to sit and think. Also, the way that the professors, the Engineering Department chair and dean and their staff—specifically Betty Warras—have been so incredibly supportive, helpful, and welcoming.

4) If you were able to merge another discipline with yours, what would that be and why?

Biology. Water quality depends not just on an engineered system made of machines to improve the water that flows through, but also on the biological matter within the water. An understanding of biology creates a deeper view of how to solve global water problems. They work hand in hand along with chemistry.

5) What is your favorite stress-reduction activity?

I love art and UWM has great art galleries on campus and an awesome cinema that plays independent films. These things keep me inspired and realizing that outside of campus there are people different from me, struggling and succeeding in things that I am not even considering at this moment. These thoughts keep my life in perspective and keep me inspired to continually grow and reach out to the world.

6) What do you most enjoy about Milwaukee?

The lakefront. As a child my parents brought us to the beach on the weekends to enjoy the water. I would stand on the shore and look out and I remember thinking, “That is the biggest thing I’ve ever seen—it’s bigger than the whole world.” As I grow and learn specifics about global environmental water issues, that memory constantly reaffirms that despite all of the severe environmental concerns that consume me on a daily basis, the earth is a mesmerizing place that can astonish anyone if they just stare awhile and take a deep breath. That and the Milwaukee Art Museum, which coincidentally is located on the lakefront.

7) Is there anything that you've had to "give up" as a graduate student?

I’ve had to give up relaxing and free time, and to really prioritize my extracurricular activities. Early on I was elected co-chair of UWM’s Student Chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB@UWM). We have designed and implemented a water-distribution system for the Village of Quejchip, Guatemala and plan on constructing a water disinfection system in June of 2009 including slow sand filtration and water chlorination. There are weeks that I have to put work for EWB@UWM off in order to dive deeply into my experiment and studies. It is tough to prioritize when I know that my studies benefit the work we do with Quejchip and that EWB@UWM benefits me.

8) What are your plans for after graduate school?

I plan on continuing my Ph.D studies and becoming a university professor.

9) What trait do you find most necessary to succeed in graduate school?

Persistence and a sense of humor. I make so many mistakes that set me back, but then I realize I would have never been able to go forward without knowing what I learned from the mistake.

10) Do you have any advice that you would give to a new graduate student in your program?

This is your life—make of it what you will, but don’t waste your time. Build on your knowledge and connect what you like. It takes expertise in many subjects to be successful. So, get to know your emphasis but don’t lose touch with the entire field.