Last weekend, the Borch group celebrated a record FOUR students receiving PhDs at commencement! Congratulations Dr. Logan, Dr. VanderRoest, Dr. Malik, and Dr. Wiltse! We are so proud of your hard work and contributions to our lab and we can’t wait to see all you will accomplish for the rest of your careers.

Dr. Jacob VanderRoest started in the Borch lab in 2021, where he worked to understand changes to the soil metabolome and soil organic matter after wildfires, working in highly interdisciplinary teams. He has not only become an expert in his field, but also mentored countless students in his time at CSU, from highschoolers in the community, to undergraduates, to fellow PhD students. Dr. VanderRoest will continue building his chemical and mentorship expertise as a post doctoral researcher in the prestigious Fendorf research group at Stanford University this fall.

Dr. Marin Wiltse began in the Borch group in 2020, in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. But don’t think a pandemic could slow her down! Dr. Wiltse specialized in the characterization, treatment, and reuse of oil and gas produced water during her time at CSU, working with experts in her field along the way. In particular, Dr. Wiltse became an expert in the non-targeted characterization of surfactants in contaminated water, which is no easy task! In the Borch group, she also helped develop many standard lab practices used by other students, and became an expert on what seems like every scientific instrument the lab possesses. Dr. Wiltse is now an environmental chemist at Formation Environmental LLC where she continues to use her many skills she honed in the Borch group.

Dr. Huma Malik joined the Borch group in 2019, after moving halfway around the world from her home in Pakistan on a Fulbright scholarship. Dr. Malik was also an esteemed member of the Borch lab’s produced water research group, where she investigated the effects of treated produced water on soil and crop health to see if agricultural reuse is a safe and valid option. Dr. Malik has worked with organizations such as the New Mexico Produced Water consortium and Exxon Mobil in her work, and even presented her important findings on CBS News! We are so excited to see all Dr. Malik will accomplish next

Dr. Merritt Logan started in the Borch group in 2017, where he continued the Borch lab’s important work on understanding soil organic matter and organic nitrogen cycling in the context of thawing permafrost. His work has been extremely valuable in understanding the links between thawing permafrost and climate change. Although there is no permafrost in Fort Collins, Dr. Logan made the trip all the way to Sweden to sample there, as part of an international research collaboration. Along the way, Dr. Logan also became an expert in many cutting edge analytical techniques, particularly FT-ICR-MS. Nice job Dr. Logan! We can’t wait to see what you do next!

Congratulations to all of our graduates, we are so proud of you and incredibly thankful for all you contributed to our lab in your time with us!