Alia M.

Benedict
bened109@umn.edu, 5502 E. 5th St, Duluth, Minnesota, 55812
EDUCATION
University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth, Minnesota Jan 2023 - present
PhD Student, Water Resources Science, Limnology and Oceanography
Advisor: Dr. Ted Ozersky
Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany Sep 2019 - Sep 2022
Fulbright Research Scholar and Master of Science, Biology
Advisor: Dr. Juergen Geist
Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota Sep 2015 - May 2019
Bachelor of Science, Biology

ARTICLES AND PUBLICATIONS

A. Benedict, Stoeckel, R. Kuehn, and J. Geist (2024). Genetic comparisons of the invasive pond mussel
Sinanodonta woodiana from wild and shop populations in Germany. Hydrobiologia, 1-13
J. Geist, A. Benedict, A. Dobler, P. Hoos, B. Hoess, and J. Geist (2023). Functional interactions of non-
native aquatic fauna with European freshwater bivalves. Hydrobiologia, 1-23.
A. Benedict & J. Geist (2021). Effects of water temperature on glochidium viability of Unio crassus and
Sinanodonta woodiana: implications for conservation and management. Journal of Molluscan Studies
A. Benedict, M. Hove, B. Sietman, M. Pletta, and D. Hornbach (2019). Natural Hosts of Some Common
Mississippi River Mussel Species. Ellipsaria (21)2, 33-35 (non-reviewed article).

IN PREPARATION
Currently under construction.

TALKS AND POSTERS

Upcoming: A. Benedict and T. Ozersky. Loss of winter and changing food webs. Midwest Climate
Adaptation Center Annual Meeting, East Lansing, Michigan, August 2023. Oral presentation.
A. Benedict, L. Feucht, C. Schoenebeck, T. Hrabik, and T. Ozersky. Seasonal community dynamics
in lakes of contrasting trophic status and winter severity, Association for the Science of Limnology
and Oceanography annual meeting, Madison, Wisconsin, June 2024. Oral presentation.
A. Benedict, C. Schonebeck, T. Hrabik, and T. Ozersky. Winter anoxia in shallow eutrophic lake,
Twin Ports Freshwater Folk May Symposium, Duluth, Minnesota, May 2024. Poster presentation.
A. Benedict, C. Schonebeck, T. Hrabik, and T. Ozersky. Winter kill extends past fish: impact of
severe winter on lake zooplankton community, Minnesota Chapter American Fisheries Society
Annual Meeting, Brainerd, Minnesota, February 2024. Poster presentation (Best Poster 2nd place).
L. Feucht, T. Hrabik, A. Stott, C. Schoenebeck, A. Benedict, and T. Ozersky. Seasonal comparison of
Minnesota fishes across various lake types, Minnesota Chapter American Fisheries Society Annual
Meeting, Brainerd, Minnesota, February 2024. Oral presentation.
A. Benedict. Effects of seasonal transitions on microbial activity in Minnesota lakes, National
Association of Marine Laboratories Biennial Meeting, Boston, Massachusetts, October 2023. Oral
presentation (virtual).
A. Benedict and J. Geist. Early life-cycle stages in freshwater mussel conservation and management,
European Congress of Malacological Societies, September 2022. Poster presentation (virtual) .
A. Benedict, J. Geist. Effects of water temperature on glochidium viability, Freshwater Mussel
Conservation Society Annual Meeting, April 2021. Oral presentation (virtual) (Best Student Lightning
Talk 2nd place).

TEACHING
● Instructor, BIOL 1012 General Biology II (1 semester), August - December 2023
● Grader, BIOL 5809, Ecological Statistics (1 semester), August - December 2023
● Writing Tutor, English Writing Center, Technical University of Munich, 2020 - 2021
● Instructor, GERM 101 Elementary German I (2 semesters), August 2018 - May 2019

STUDENTS MENTORED
● Emma Revenaugh (Undergraduate Student), Colorado College. Geochemical analysis
characterizes risk of eutrophication in upper Midwestern lakes, May - August 2023.

● Abigail Stott (Undergraduate Student), University of Minnesota Duluth. Seasonal differences in

benthic invertebrate communities in two Minnesota lakes, May - August 2023.

SCHOLARSHIPS, HONORS, AND AWARDS

● Midwest CASC Graduate Fellowship (research stipend and one year of graduate tuition),
United States Geological Survey, 2024
● Climate and Agriculture Scholar ($200), Institute on the Environment, University of
Minnesota, 2023
● Council of Graduate Students Research Grant ($1,000), University of Minnesota, 2023
● NEAMGLL Student Award ($600), National Association of Marine Laboratories, 2023
● Germany National Scholarship Award ($2,700), Technical University of Munich, 2023
● Fulbright Study and Research Student Grant ($12,000), 2019 - 2020
● Student Educator of the Year Nominee, Macalester College, 2018

SERVICE
● Founder and Organizer, Student Network Of Winter Science (SNOWS), March 2024 - present
● Organizer, Great Lakes Winter Research Network (GLWiN), January 2024 - present
● Undergraduate Affairs Committee Member, Student Resources Committee, Society for
Freshwater Science (SFS), September 2023- June 2024
 ● Volunteer, STARBASE Minnesota Outreach Summer School Program, Summer 2023
● Volunteer, Science on Deck, Large Lakes Observatory, University of Minnesota Duluth, Summer
2023-2024
● Student Representative, Biology Department, Macalester College, 2017-2018
● Language Tutor, German Department, Macalester College , 2018-2019

MEDIA FEATURES
● Ecology Under Ice: promotional material for the University of Minnesota
● A Sea for Change: PBS documentary about climate change in Lake Superior

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
● International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR), 2024 – present
● Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO), 2024 – present
● Society for Freshwater Sciences (SFS), 2023-2024
● Great Lakes Winter Research Network (GLWiN), 2023 – present
● University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment (IonE), 2023
● Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society (FMCS), 2018 - 2023