School of Environmental Studies

Professional Science Master’s (PSM)
Current Students

William Green

PSM Student William Green William is from the Cookeville, TN area and received his Bachelor's degree in Education at Tennessee Tech in 2010. He began the Professional Science Master's program in 2022 and is tentatively going to work for the Water Center on a project in the Elk River watershed. William spent some time in the military, previously worked at Waters Farm from 2007 to 2010, and is currently working as a Graduate Assistant for the School of Environmental Studies at Tennessee Tech. He also dabbles in gardening and farming with his wife on their small farm in Putnam County.

Terpase Alex Igbax

PSM Student Terpase Alex Igbax Alex is from Nigeria and is currently working on an environmental analysis of Cookeville businesses who practice sustainability. He is also utilizing remote sensing to investigate the recent earthquake event in Turkey and helping a team that is developing an indoor navigation system. Alex is a diligent college student focused on environmental informatics and dedication to prompt project completion and continual adaptation. He is a team-oriented collaborator with reliability and focus on equitable task distribution through group projects and motivation to accomplish mutually held goals. While currently working as a Graduate Assistant for Tennessee Tech, Alex is also looking for an internship for the summer of 2023 in a GIS-related position.

Jacob Landfield

PSM Student Jacob Landfield Jacob is from Stuart, FL, briefly lived in TN, and currently resides in West Palm Beach, FL. His major project is providing data analysis on the Caloosahatchee River's water quality monitoring sites. Jacob recently accepted a position with the South Florida Water Management District, a division of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, to work in the Project Operations and Assessment Section. This position was created by the Northern Everglades and Estuaries Protection Program (NEEPP) is part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. Overall, his work connects the inputs from the Kissimmee River watersheds, through the Lake Okeechobee watersheds, and out to the Florida Everglades or the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie River watersheds.

Benjamin Lane

PSM Student Benjamin Lane Ben is from Gordonsville, TN and is working on mapping census data for Tennessee using ArcGIS Pro.

Jennifer Nwafor

PSM Student Jennifer Nwafor Jennifer is from Enugu State, Nigeria and is currently working on The Evaluation of Combined Sewer Network Design Using GIS. She previously worked at G Johns Nigeria Limited as an Environmental Manager.

Holly Stripling

PSM Student Holly Stripling Holly is from Grandview, TN and is currently working on creating a map using ArcGIS Pro that shows current and potential sinkhole areas in Putnam County. She received her Bachelor's of Science degree in 2022 with a concentration in Geosciences. Holly currently works as a Graduate Assistant at Tennessee Tech in both the Earth Sciences Department and the School of Environmental Studies.

David Sutton

PSM Student David Sutton David is from Olympia, WA and is interested in enrolling in the PhD program to do integrated research using ArcGIS Modeling to determine the plume of landfill leachate and the effects heavy metals have on a watershed's aquatic and plant life. He is a Combat Veteran and was in the U.S Army for 16 years. David currently works for the Department of Environment and Conservation as an Environmental Consultant.

Sarah Terpstra

PSM student Sarah Terpstra Sarah was born and raised in Oak Ridge, TN but currently resides in Nashville, TN. Her recent Environmental GIS project was evaluating soil suitability for subsurface disposal systems based on soil absorption rates and hillside slope. Sarah currently works as an Environmental Consultant with the State's Division of Water Resources, writing National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for municipal and industrial facilities. These permits require permittees to meet certain conditions in order to prevent pollution and protect the streams and rivers in our state.

Vennela Vakapali

PSM Student Vennela Vakapalli Vennela is from India and loves singing, designing, dancing, cooking, writing, and speaking. She currently works as a TA at Tennessee Tech.