Navigating new waters: The power of mentorship in STEM

This past weekend, I realized that I'd just passed the ten-year anniversary of my arrival as a fresh-faced new grad student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Needless to say, a lot has changed since then.

As I've mentioned in my previous posts, I've had a particularly weird and windy path to my current position in the water industry. In particular, it took me a very long time to realize that my interests - and my skills - were much better aligned with helping people from different backgrounds understand science, than they were with creating and running computer models.

The world of science policy is very much open waters, without clear markers to designate "Here there be Dragons". There simply isn't a lot of good guidance on potential careers or professional development opportunities, simply because the field is relatively new. My own journey would not have been possible without the network of mentors I've developed over the past ten years, who have helped me navigate these uncharted waters.

This post is an homage to that network, and the way they've shaped me into the scientist I am today. There's already a lot of content on the internet about the value of mentorship, so I'm not going to try and reinvent the wheel. Instead, this post is a reflection on the qualities of good mentorship - and how I've seen those qualities mirrored in my personal lived experience.

A good mentor builds your confidence.

Every grad student has hit a wall at some point. Maybe it's the first time you get a paper rejected for publication. Or maybe you're struggling to prepare for your Quals. Or maybe you're just having a really bad day with model QAQC.

Whatever the case, a good mentor is invaluable to getting you past those first (or second, or third...) hurdles as you're building your confidence as a baby scientist. In my case, my advisor, Dr. Ashlynn Stillwell, has always been my biggest champion. More importantly, she's always had an uncanny knack for seeing what her students are great at, and giving them the flexibility to lean into those skills and really shine.

Because of her, I not only converted the last third of my dissertation into a thesis on the legal theory of green infrastructure, but also used that opportunity to co-author my most successful (and certainly most unusual) paper. Having a supportive mentor who allowed me the space to explore my interests gave me the confidence to eventually explore the uncharted waters of science and legal policy as a AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow.

A good mentor encourages you to try the "impossible".

I nearly didn't apply for the Fellowship that permanently altered my career trajectory.

While I'd toyed with the idea of applying for the prestigious AAAS STPF Fellowship, something always seemed to get in the way. When I graduated in 2019, I wasn't a citizen yet. Then, I was too busy buckling down to my work as a civil engineer, debating whether it was worth studying for professional licensure. Then, the pandemic hit.

By Fall 2020, I was feeling pretty hopeless. Then, Dr. Bryan Endres, who had been part of my thesis committee, sent me a link to the AAAS STPF Judicial Fellowship. I have to admit that I laughed. The list of past Fellows seemed daunting - mid-career scientists who all had both JDs and PhDs. And there was only one Fellow selected every year from a pool of hundreds of hopeful applicants.

It seemed impossible. But Dr. Endres, who had already seen my enthusiasm for science writing and legal scholarship, insisted that I would be a good fit. He even offered to write a reference for me. I finally caved.

Six months later, I received my offer letter.

A good mentor gives you room to grow - and fail.

Over the course of my AAAS STPF Fellowships with the Judicial and Executive branches, I've had several very different mentors.

However, the biggest learning experiences have come from mentors who've given me the ability to take big swings outside my comfort zone. Those mentors are the same people who've also given me the grace to fail forward when I've inevitably bitten off more than I can chew.

During my Judicial Fellowship, Dr. Beth Wiggins offered me the unique chance to be part of the development of the latest edition of the Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence. This dense treatise forms the bedrock of scientific education for the federal judiciary, and is a tightly-knit collaboration between the National Academies, the Federal Judicial Center, and an expert panel of judges and scientists from a range of disciplines. It's also a document whose development requires a lot of patient, active listening on the part of the federal staff who are part of the project. As someone who has a strong tendency to speak up during meetings, it took time - and a lot of patient coaching from Beth - for me to realize that the most important voice in the room is often the note-taker: the person who helps to shape the agenda.

As an Executive Branch Fellow, I had to learn the opposite lesson: how to appropriately lean in and say "yes" to new opportunities. Dr. Joe Cresco not only opened up a space for me to become more involved with the water analytics team within DOE-IEDO, but also didn't let me pigeonhole myself as just "the water girl". Through Joe, I was able to get involved with inter-agency climate resilience work that I never would have had a chance to otherwise experience. The opportunity was eye-opening... and a great lesson in the value of managing expectations between competing interests to avoid burn-out.

A good mentor sees you as a whole person.

Throughout graduate school and in my professional career, I have been incredibly lucky to have mentors who have given me room to blossom beyond just my "professional" expertise.

That's especially true at my current role at Isle Inc, where the entire team (and especially the Isle Americas President, Cristina Ahmadpour) values the passions that the team has outside what we do at work. Because our team is completely remote, the focus on work-life balance is critical for maintaining team morale and avoiding burnout.

My odd collection of skills and hobbies have become nearly legendary within our small team (some day I'll get to share my recipe for wampa arm jelly roll cake). I've even gotten to share my (extremely silly) short talk on the Science of Dune on our international Water Action Platform!

As I continue to learn and grow as a young professional, I still rely on my mentor network to help me avoid the reefs, shoals, and potential sharks of my chosen career. I'm excited to continue to chart my own course - and hopefully leave a series of markers behind me to help those who follow in my wake.