people

Alumni Profile

Interview with: Tom Hollowell

Graduated: Ph.D., 2006

Employer: Smithsonian Institution

Job Title: Information Technology Specialist

Job Description: Tom works on a management team of the National Museum of Natural History’s EMu database. This database is the centralized catalog that facilitates curation of the museum’s collections. Among his many duties, Tom integrates records from legacy databases into EMu and coordinates the implementation of a web-interface to make the data accessible to scientists and the public-at-large.

 

Why did he choose the EVPP program at Mason?

After Tom moved to Arlington, VA, he researched area universities for graduate programs in ecology and environmental science. The Environmental Science and Policy program at Mason best matched his interests. He then contacted a potential EVPP research advisor, (the late) Francis Heliotis, who introduced him to the department. Initially, Tom applied to Mason as a continuing student, earned a Certificate in Environmental Management, and immediately entered the Master’s program. He then worked for a couple of years before returning to pursue a Ph.D.

 

How did he fund his graduate research?

Tom funded his graduate education and supported his family with a combination of teaching assistantships at Mason, paid internships and consulting contracts that allowed him to gain career experience in the “real world”. He credits networking with other Mason graduate students and timely advice from Mason faculty for alerting him to these opportunities, one of which led to his current full-time position at the Smithsonian. These opportunities included stints with the environmental consulting firm Tetra-Tech, Northern Virginia Community College, the Land Condition Trend Analysis team at Quantico base, the federal government’s Integrated Taxonomic Information System, and the National Museum of Natural History. One of his more memorable jobs was through Mason’s Center for Global Education, where he led student groups on study-tours of the Galápagos Islands and mainland Ecuador.

 

How did he choose his dissertation project?

Tom worked as the Data Manager for the Smithsonian’s Biological Diversity of the Guianas program for most of his Ph.D. program at Mason. During a job-related field trip to Guyana, he discovered that El Niño droughts were severely impacting the coastal mangrove forests there. To his surprise, despite the world-wide importance of mangrove ecosystems as fish nurseries and barriers against coastal erosion, there were little published data about this phenomenon. This research gap inspired him to investigate the vegetation changes occurring in those mangrove forests for his dissertation.

 

Does he have any advice for current or prospective EVPP grad students?

Tom suggests, “Don’t say no to opportunities that are in a field you love, and be flexible to accommodate them.”