Kellie is originally from Greeley, Colorado, but in the past she has lived in Chicago, England, and Steamboat Springs. She loves to travel, and also enjoys archery, hiking, playing the flute, reading, board games, and sushi. Kellie received her associate’s degree from Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs before transferring to the University of Colorado Boulder.
The focus of her research at CU was to see if it is possible to use a neural network, a machine learning method, to examine potential linkages between surface features and the vertical structure of ocean productivity and biomass in the California Current System using sonar and satellite data sets as my input features. Kellie plans to pursue a career in Atmospheric Science with a goal of working in industry or government to research the interconnectedness of atmospheric dynamics and climate change. Kellie is now working towarsd her PhD at the University of Arizona in the Department of Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences. A few areas of research that she plans to pursue are 1) the impacts of climate on jet streams, 2) synoptic atmospheric dynamics on Earth, and 3) atmospheric dynamics of other worlds, specifically Titan or even exoplanets.
Kellie's McNair Scholars mentor was Nick Dragone. Her faculty advisor was Dr. Kris Karnauskas.