M&A Scholarship recipients announced

Congratulations to the recipients of the inaugural Montgomery & Associates (M&A) scholarship, offered to University of Arizona students pursuing degrees in the Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences (HAS) or Geosciences department.

Emily Caylor, geosciences doctoral student; Héctor Venegas, hydrology doctoral student; and Jonathan Hasenstab, hydrology master’s student, will each receive approximately $1,800 for the 2023-2024 academic year. Students are nominated by professors in their respective departments and recipients are chosen by the Dean of the College of Science or a designee.

Emily’s graduate research–currently in its third chapter–involves studying ancient sedimentary basins and mountains to reconstruct the paleogeographic and tectonic history of the western United States. She hopes to teach at a university in the future.

Héctor, who works at M&A as a hydrogeologist, is pursuing a Ph.D. in hydrology as well as a “Water in Mine Operations and Slope Stability” certificate. Hector is dedicated to advancing scientific knowledge and finding practical solutions to environmental challenges by using remote sensing data and machine learning algorithms.

Jonathan is an undergraduate senior pursuing a master’s degree in hydrology and atmospheric sciences with a water resources emphasis. He plans to obtain his degree in 5 years through the university’s Accelerated Master’s Program, after which he hopes to pursue work with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) or Pima County Regional Control District.

The M&A scholarship was established to benefit HAS and Geosciences students. HAS majors must have a demonstrated interest in investigations in groundwater; geosciences majors must have a demonstrated interest in investigations in subsurface fluid-rock interactions including mining-related groundwater characterization, management, and conservation.

Hale Barter, M&A president and UArizona HAS alumnus, said, “We are pleased to recognize these outstanding UArizona HAS and Geosciences students in groundwater studies. M&A has connections with both these departments dating back to the 1960s through our founders and many of our past and current employees.  These scholarships are both an opportunity to give back to the university’s hydrology community and a commitment to developing new scientists to solve the complex issues of subsurface hydrology in the face of unprecedented water demand and scarcity.”

For more information about the scholarship, please visit UArizona HAS scholarship opportunities. To learn more about M&A and our services, please visit the website or contact Juliet McKenna, P.G.

Emily Caylor, Héctor Venegas, and Jonathan Hasenstab