July ISU Career Path Intern of the Month is Zane Stephenson

Stephenson has spent the past year as a CPI intern working with biological sciences Professor Ernest Keeley and his graduate students in the Fish Ecology Laboratory in the Department of Biological Sciences. The primary project Stephenson has been working on focuses on relating abiotic habitat features to the growth rates of native trout in regional streams.

“During his time working in the lab he has demonstrated that he is a driven self-starter who learns quickly and fully applies himself to his education,” stated Tyson Hallbert, Fish Ecology Lab Ph.D. student and Stephenson’s supervisor. “He represents the quality of student the program seeks to assist in gaining research experience.” 

Recently, Stephenson attended and presented a poster at the Idaho Chapter of the American Fisheries Society’s annual meeting. Stephenson’s poster, “Does temporal variability in stream flow and temperature influence the growth of cutthroat trout in headwater streams?” was selected as the first-place winner in the student poster category.

Stephenson plans to attend graduate school to further study ecology and conservation biology. Originally from the Blackfoot area, Stephenson enjoys riding bulls, fly fishing and enjoying the great outdoors in his spare time.