Biology Ph.D. graduate, Wesley Hull, received the 2025 Graduate School Medal Award. This award is given to recognize doctoral candidate “scholar-citizens,” whose academic expertise and social awareness are integrated in a way that demonstrates active civic engagement and a capacity to promote political, cultural and social change. His research explores how burrowing shrimp impact key habitat-forming species—both ecologically and economically—and how these changes affect shellfish farmers in Washington’s outer coast communities. With the help of the biology department, Washington State Sea Grant and shellfish farmers, he has examined ecosystem engineers, animals that can modify their habitats through the creation of structure or physical behavior, and how they interact with one another.  

Wes was featured on the Graduate School website for this honor. Excerpt from the article:

In Northern California, Wesley Hull grew up fishing on the shores of Humboldt Bay with his father. In this quiet corner of the state, shucking is more than a task—it’s a ritual of patience, grit and deep connection to place. As a kid, he and his father would spend hours on the water or in the mud, fishing and harvesting shellfish. They frequently visited the docks where they chatted with other community members and commercial fisherman – some of whom his father had previously built relationships with through construction work. These early experiences sparked Wesley’s interest in estuarine environments, but also the people most connected with them. As a graduate student he maintained his connection to this environment and community by working as an oyster farmer while studying biology.  

Congratulations, Wes!

Image: Dean Joy Williamson-Lott and Wesley Hull at the Graduate Medal Award ceremony. Read the full article on the Graduate School website.