Rachael is a Ph.D. student in Biological Science at Florida State University (FSU) specializing in Ecology and Evolution. She graduated from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in 2018 with a B.S. in Biology with honors, a second major in Environmental Studies, and a minor in Mathematics. At FSU, Rachael researches gorgonian octocoral population ecology and the effects that stressors, such as high macroalgal cover or sedimentation, have on their population dynamics. She hopes that her research can shed light on the mechanisms driving observed patterns in gorgonian distribution and abundance between reefs and how increasing stressors will alter reef communities.