The University of Vermont Graduate College is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021-2022 Thomas J. Votta Scholarship:

Liza Morse, a Ph.D. student in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources and trainee in UVM’s Quantitative and Evolutionary STEM Training (QuEST) Program

Prior to graduate school, Liza worked for various non-profit organizations in Vermont to promote land conservation, document wildlife populations, and engage landowners in habitat management. As a self-professed bird nerd, Liza is applying her personal passion for avian life in her work investigating the impact of maple sugaring on biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Green Mountain State. Her research with Drs. Brendan Fisher, Tony D’Amato, and Rachelle Gould, in collaboration with partners at Vermont Center for Ecostudies and Audubon Vermont, will help improve management recommendations for sugarers looking to support bird life and will also facilitate forest resiliency and carbon storage in their sugarbushes.

Following graduate school, Liza hopes to work for organizations operating at the nexus of conservation science and application to address the many challenges facing humans and wildlife. When not looking through a pair of binoculars for work, Liza is probably looking through a pair of binoculars for fun, baking a cake, or hiking with her dog, Gus.

Taylor Smith, Sustainable Innovation Master of Business Administration Candidate, Grossman School of Business

Taylor joined SI-MBA after six years working for an environmental engineering consulting firm near Baltimore. He’s spent the bulk of his professional career conducting environmental investigations and facilitating redevelopment on historically contaminated industrial sites, including the former Bethlehem Steel production plant located in Sparrows Point, Maryland. The plant was historically the largest steel making facility in the United States with a long history at the intersection of industry, labor, and the environment. Taylor has extensive experience facilitating cooperation between regulatory agencies, multi-disciplinary engineering firms, and non-profit organizations like the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. 

As modern industries consider new environmental and social challenges, Taylor hopes to make a meaningful impact in the transition toward a more sustainable future. He decided to join UVM’s SI-MBA program to learn about the business strategies, marketing decisions, economics, data analytics, and financing tools that can help achieve real impact by leveraging the power of business. He is particularly interested in the potential of renewable energy projects to create sustainable value and revitalize communities.  
  
“We find ourselves at an inflection point,” he says, “where we must find solutions to the massive environmental challenges facing our local and global communities. I believe we must choose to view those challenges as opportunities to create, grow, and adapt. I was attracted to SI-MBA because it seamlessly integrates sustainability into the core business curriculum. This is a program that aligns with my core values.”

Taylor previously earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental Engineering and a master’s degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Delaware. He is also a licensed Professional Engineer. When he takes a break from his graduate studies, Taylor enjoys hiking and exploring Burlington.

The Thomas J. Votta Memorial Fund is established by the friends and family of Tom Votta to provide annual scholarship assistance to UVM graduate students in the Grossman School of Business, College of Engineering and Mathematics, or Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources who, like Tom, wishes to make a difference in solving environmental problems and using environmental best practices to meet this goal.