Ph.D. Student
School of Biological Sciences
Georgia Institute of Technology
Email: Bjaco6@gatech.edu
B.S. Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA
After serving in the United States Navy, I graduated, with honors, from Florida State University with a Bachelor’s in Biological Science. As an undergraduate, I participated in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program and received the Florida State University IDEA Grant. The FSU IDEA Grant funded research on the growth rate of Echinaster spinulosus during predation on encrusting ascidians and population dynamics in St. Joseph’s Bay.
After receiving my bachelor’s degree, I worked at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as an Environmental Specialist in the Toxicology Laboratory. The following year, I received the Florida State University Lazzara Scholarship, which facilitated training as an Oyster Hatchery Technician at the FSU Marine Lab. While there, I worked with a team to build and operate FSU’s oyster hatchery. Additionally, we assessed the feasibility of an experimental mobile oyster hatchery developed by Oyster Seed Holdings.
In 2022, I received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship – the application for which was inspired by Dr. Kubanek’s research. Presently, I am working on a metabolomics project, “The Chemistry of Fear,” in which I seek to identify compounds in oyster predator urine that cause oysters to develop stronger shells. My research is focused on, signaling molecules that influence marine population dynamics which have implications for conservation efforts.
Please feel free to reach out to me through email or Linked In.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/benton-jaco-990909126