Project Team

Principal Investigators (USF Professors)

Sarina Ergas	Dr. Marucio Arias	Dr. Mary Lusk	Dr. James R Mihelcic

Faculty Information	Faculty Information	Faculty Information	Faculty Information
Dr. Mahmood Nachabe	Dr. Christian wells	Dr. Qiong Zhang

Faculty Information	Faculty Information	Faculty Information

Student Assistants

Chao Ye	Chao Ye is a PhD candidate in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida. Her research interest is focusing on the interdependency analysis of urban stormwater drainage and roadway systems, which includes exploring the performance of urban stormwater drainage system under different conditions using EPA SWMM hydraulic simulation model, finding the practical strategies to optimize the performance of drainage systems, analyzing and enhancing the performance of interdependent stormwater drainage and roadway systems considering their inter-connection. In this project, her job is to conduct the stormwater quality modeling for the target stormwater pond using SWMM software and get insights for stormwater quality management.
Nur Shadia	I completed a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering & Technology (BUET) and a master's degree in civil engineering from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Currently, I am pursuing a PhD in Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida. I would like to study the origins, transport, distribution, remediation, and identify possible impacts of various pollutants in the natural environment. In this project, I will use SWMM software to simulate the stormwater pond's stormwater quality and help with floating treatment wetland modeling.
Ananda Bhattacharjee	Ananda Bhattacharjee is an assistant research professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida (USF). Ananda completed his bachelor’s master’s in India and his Ph.D. at the University of Utah. He completed his postdoctoral appointments at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences and IGB, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His research integrates microbial culturing and advanced omics approaches with environmental engineering. At USF, Ananda is working on (a) novel bio-infiltration systems to reduce nutrient discharges in lakes and rivers and (b) novel biochar-based polishing systems to remove contaminants of emerging concerns from treated municipal wastewater.
Serena Echols	Serena Echols is an environmental scientist and anthropologist with a passion for placemaking, placekeeping, and justice for minority and marginalized communities. She graduated from Spelman College in 2023 with a B.S. in Environmental Science. Her primary role in Zombie Ponds redevelopment project is to engage community residents in understanding stormwater ponds and their relationship with the local stormwater pond, Aaran’s Pond, in hopes of co-designing green infrastructure at this site. She is the primary graduate student working on Task 1: Community Engagement, accompanying co-principal investigator, Dr. Christian Wells. Method of community engagement include in attending community events, creating community outreach materials, participant observations, rapid needs assessments, focus groups, and conducting interviews with scientist, engineers, and community residents
Emily Walsh	I moved to Tampa in the fall of 2020 to begin my Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) at USF. I recently graduated in May 2024, and will begin a concurrent graduate degree program in the fall to pursue a Master of Public Health (MPH) and a Master’s in Applied Anthropology (MA). My involvement with the University Area began back in early 2021, when I became a regular volunteer for the University Area Community Development Corporation. Frequently volunteering in the University community eventually led to me discovering this project and getting into my current role as a research assistant. With this project, I am working alongside Dr. Wells, and graduate student Serena Echols, to help increase awareness and community engagement on the redevelopment of Aaran’s Pond in order to help facilitate the co-design with our community correspondents.
Tyler Koerner	My interest in anthropology began with me collecting fossils and artifacts before evolving into a passion that led to me acquiring a bachelor's through USF. As part of this project, I have really been able to diversify my experiences beyond just anthropological work through the process of learning web design and assisting in engineering analyses. While I have engaged more with cultural anthropology and environmental justice through community involvement. After having been accepted as a fresh master’s student in the department of anthropology, I'm currently in the process of designing my thesis with Dr. Mahoney. Having figured out my position as an environmental anthropologist, my research interests consist of multispecies ethnography, narratives of development and human land treatment, and how people navigate around natural and human-caused risk factors. In the future I hope to pursue more work that deals with these unique problems.
Tione Grant	As a child, I dreamed of being a scientist. In 2017, 1 got the opportunity to begin that dream when I was introduced to Undergraduate research while pursuing my Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics at the University of the Virgin Islands. I gained a wide array of laboratory and field experience and soon developed an interest in nutrient management in water. This interest led to me working as a research assistant with USF’s Environmental Engineering in 2021. This fall, I will be pursuing a master’s and PhD in Environmental Engineering at USF and developing my dissertation research on using machine learning to improve the management of urban stormwater ponds like Aaron’s Pond. In the future, I aspire to use my network and experience, whether in academia or industry, to provide my communities with the opportunities that put me where I am today.
Joshelyn Guimaray	I hold a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering (2019) and a master's degree in Environmental Engineering (2022), both from the University of South Florida (USF). Currently, I am pursuing a PhD in Environmental Engineering at USF. During my master's, I focused on drinking water, but I switched my research topic to stormwater for my PhD to expand my knowledge in different types of water treatment. My dissertation research centers on designing bioretention systems to treat stormwater runoff, aiming to reduce levels of dissolved inorganic nitrogen species in the water. This project ties in with my dissertation research, expanding it to a larger scale through a field study. In the future, I aspire to become a university professor, dedicating my career to advancing research in stormwater runoff and related areas.
Vicky Lopez	Hello all, I’m currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in environmental engineering at the University of South Florida and plan to graduate fall 2025. I started my research experience journey the summer of 2023, and have helped assist on different projects that would focus on treating fertilizer runoff and phosphate removal. From those experiences, I was able to join this project and I am now working alongside Joshelyn Guimaray, where we will tackle the design of the bioretention systems to treat stormwater runoff. It’s my goal to learn as much as possible and understand the different innovative ways that are being implemented to treat water.
Julia Manser Photo
Paula Sanchez Garzon	My name is Paula Sanchez Garzon, I got my bachelors degree in environmental management with a concentration in natural resources and agriculture at the University of Florida. My passion for sustainability, water quality, urban resiliency, stormwater management, and remediation started back in Colombia when I did a research project on water purification through coffee grounds while pursuing chemical engineering in my country. Working at water treatment plants enhanced my passion in biogeochemical processes, and I am currently pursuing my masters in soil, water, and ecosystem sciences at UF with a concentration in wetland sciences. I am in charge of monitoring water quality over time at Aaron’s pond and implementing floating treatment wetlands at harvest pond to study its efficiency on removing pollutants through different wetland and ornamental plants.
Isaiah Sewell	Isaiah Sewell is currently a senior at East Bay High School in Riverview, Florida, and interning for the University of South Florida. His primary focus is on community engagement and conducting GIS surveys to understand the social economic status and demographics of the residents who live near Aaran's pond. Being born and raised in Tampa Bay, Isaiah is familiar with the social climate of the area. He has an interest in all things involving science and journalism, u which helps him navigate communication and understand residential knowledge on this project.