Five Batten School & VIMS students recognized in 2026-2027 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program
Five current and incoming graduate students at William & Mary's Batten School & VIMS have been recognized with awards and honorable mentions as part of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) 2026-2027 Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP).
The NSF GRFP is considered one of the nation's most prestigious fellowship programs, recognizing outstanding graduate students across the United States who are pursuing research-based degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). It provides three years of financial support, allowing them to maintain focus on their research endeavors. Since 1952, it has supported more than 70,000 graduate research fellows, including 40 Nobel laureates.
“The NSF's recognition of these students is a testament to our preeminence as a national leader in research and academics,” said Siddhartha Mitra, associate dean for Academic Affairs at the Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences & VIMS. “It underscores the caliber of students we attract to our graduate programs, based on the outstanding mentorship and training our faculty are providing, and of the impact that our institution is making across our fields of study.”
From a highly competitive pool of 14,000 applicants, three students at the Batten School & VIMS were selected for the prestigious fellowship. This year’s awardees include current graduate students Elizabeth Oliver and Sierra Parker. Clara Benadon, who will begin at the Batten School & VIMS this fall, is also an awardee.
In addition, incoming students Colin Murphy and Ondine Morgan-Knapp received honorable mentions in recognition of their promise as emerging STEM leaders prepared to make meaningful contributions to their fields of study.
“We are excited to welcome our next cohort of graduate students to campus and applaud those who have been recognized through the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. These are top-tier individuals passionate about their research endeavors; it is only fitting that they will soon call the Batten School & VIMS home,” said Mitra.
More about the students
Elizabeth Oliver - GRFP awardee
Elizabeth Oliver is a master's student in the lab of David S. Johnson, associate professor at the Batten School & VIMS. Her research focuses on the expanding range of fiddler crabs and their impacts on New England salt marshes.
On Oliver’s success, Johnson said, “Of course Elizabeth won a GRFP — her intelligence, diligence and creativity inspire others in my lab. She’s a phenomenal scientist — among the most ‘field ready’ I’ve met — and I’m so proud that she joined my lab.”
“I wasn’t even sure I’d get into grad school — so to now receive this award from NSF, it reaffirms that putting in the effort, turning out good science, and using your voice to convey the big picture behind that work can lead to incredible opportunities,” Oliver reflected. “My mentor, David, helped me to become a more confident scientist and researcher. He promotes critical thinking in the lab and challenges us in ways that I try to emulate, now that I am a mentor to one of the undergraduates here.”
Sierra Parker - GRFP awardee
Sierra Parker studies the symbiotic relationship between seagrasses and microbes, with a particular interest in how beneficial bacteria associated with seagrass may play a role in seagrass establishment and growth in a restoration context.
“Sierra quickly translates curiosity into meaningful research. She combines her quantitative, experimental, and computational strengths with an ambitious research vision and a focus on making science actionable, not just publishable," said Parker’s academic advisor, Associate Professor and Director of the SAV Monitoring and Restoration Program Chris Patrick. “The NSF GRFP is a well-earned recognition of both her ability and her potential for impact.”
For Parker, the potential for meaningful action through science and data was learned early on. “As a freshman in college, I advocated to the university board on behalf of our sustainability program. It was an early lesson in the power of translating science for others and sparking change as a result,” she said. “I’m excited to continue tapping into that power at the Batten School & VIMS and in the Patrick lab — there's a deep well of knowledge and a passionate community here, and I’m very grateful to be a part of it.”
Clara Benadon – GRFP awardee
Clara Benadon will be joining the Batten School & VIMS on an M.S. bypass track in pursuit of her doctorate. For her, the fellowship is an opportunity to begin truly collaborative research exploring how and why juvenile blue crabs associate with oyster aquaculture infrastructure.
“Through the NSF GRFP I'm able to come in as a contributing member to Professor Bill Walton’s team,” explained Benadon, who will be joining Walton’s Commercial Shellfish Aquaculture Lab and the Batten School's & VIMS' Shellfish Aquaculture Program this fall. She is currently with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) Marine Invasions Lab.
“Conducting science is a magical thing," continued Benadon. "Every time we run an experiment or turn a project on its head, we’re learning more about the world. It can be a challenging field for practical reasons and so I feel incredibly fortunate to receive this investment in my research and in my career.”
Ondine Morgan-Knapp – GRFP honorable mention
Ondine Morgan-Knapp's early interests in marine research and its policy implications led her to recognize the Batten School & VIMS as the ideal place to continue her academic and professional training.
“I’m excited to join the Batten School & VIMS community for many reasons,” shared Morgan-Knapp. “A big one is the institute’s emphasis on research that has the potential to inform our understanding of coastal and marine ecosystems and the policies that protect them. Another is that after I visited campus, it was clear to me that the faculty and students have a thriving collaborative culture that I can’t wait to be a part of.”
With her co-advisors, Associate Professor Emily Rivest and Senior Research Scientist Pierre St-Laurent, Morgan-Knapp will pursue a doctorate focused on the impacts of ocean and coastal acidification on shellfish aquaculture in the Chesapeake Bay region.
Colin Murphy ’25 – GRFP honorable mention
Colin Murphy will be joining the Batten School & VIMS in the fall as another M.S. bypass student in pursuit of his doctorate. Graduate school will be something of a homecoming for Murphy, who completed his undergraduate degree at William & Mary in 2025. While at W&M, Murphy spent much of his time conducting research at another institution.
“For all of my years as an undergraduate, I worked part-time at the Bansal Lab, a disease ecology and epidemiology research lab at Georgetown University,” explained Murphy. “I was earning my marine science minor at William & Mary while I was participating in actual research on disease surveillance in dolphin populations. It’s exciting now to prepare for a return to research with my co-advisors Drs. Ryan Carnegie and Juliette Smith, exploring the relationship between viral pathogens, harmful algal toxins and oyster resiliency.”