Celida Moran

Major: B.S. Environmental Science
Minor: Geographic Information Science
University Award: Presidential Scholar Award for Huxley College
This year’s Huxley College recipient of the WWU Presidential Scholar Award is Celida Moran. Celida stands out as an extraordinary student poised to make her mark in the environmental movement. She has been engaged in research, student leadership, service and diversity initiatives her entire career here at WWU. Celida’s passion for marine science is rooted in her desire to use her skill sets to help both her community and other communities that are often marginalized and suffer disproportionately to environmental damage. Celida is the recipient of the Doris Duke Conservation Scholar Fellowship and the Ray Conservation Fellowship. She has made five scientific presentations and has served as the student representative on several search committees. Celida is an honors student, Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science officer, and began her time at Western as a Marine Science Scholar. Congratulations, Celida!

Graduate student Amy Rose Cline of the Coastal Communities and Ecology Lab and I working in the lab in the Environmental Science building. I worked under Amy and Dr. Marco Hatch's guidance analyzing photos from her field work to help determine the physical complexity of local rocky beaches. Amy shows me what it means to be a fierce woman in science, that centers perseverance, dedication, community and culture in all that she does. She has been a role model for me since the beginning.

Fellow graduating senior and CCEL lab mate Alex Trejo and I embarking on our first of many backpacking excursions with the ESCI Field Camp team under the guidance of the extraordinary Dr. John McLaughlin. We owe so much to Dr. McLaughlin, Rose Kawczynski, Scott Wilkinson, our cohort members and the others behind the scenes of Field Camp for making it possible for us to have such a crucial field experience during our undergraduate career

This is me with a chorus frog during a lunch break in the middle of data collection along the Elwha River. During Field Camp I saw black bears up close and personal for the first time, an osprey spear a fish out of the Elwha, elk, and so much more. Field Camp gave me my very first backpacking experience and my very first terrestrial research experience. For students planning to do research or outdoor environmental work, courses like Field Camp are essential to their ability to find work after college or prepare themselves for graduate school.

This is Dr. Marco Hatch and a magazine article that was written about our lab's nested mentorship. I will never have enough time in the world or enough space on a page to fully articulate how much Marco has given me since I joined his Coastal Communities and Ecology Lab in my first year at Western. Marco made me feel like I could be a scientist and made sure that all the scholarship and fellowship programs to which I applied for more research experience and financial support knew that, too. He has made my journey at Huxley a valuable one. Through him, the mentorship of his graduate students and the lessons my undergraduate lab mates have taught me, I have been able to accomplish things I could have never imagined for myself.

Graduate student Octavio Cruz of the Coastal Communities and Ecology Lab with Alex Trejo and me in the lab in the Environmental Studies building. Octavio has provided invaluable professional guidance on CV writing, job applications, research endeavors. He is also an inspiration to me to embody the values of integrity, kindness and hard work in all that I do.