The "Sed Heads"
Meet our group! There is a path in the geosciences for anyone. If you're motivated by, and interested in, the problems and questions we work on then we encourage you to reach out to us. Our projects may include modeling, data science, lab work, remote sensing, and field work... or all of the above.
Matt Malkowski
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Assistant Professor, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at Austin Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship: U.S. Geological Survey PhD: Geological Sciences, Stanford University MS: Geological Sciences, Michigan State University BS: Environmental Geosciences, Michigan State University I am a first-generation college grad with a deep-rooted passion and insatiable curiosity for exploring the natural world. I enjoy learning about it, teaching about it, and experience it with others. Link to some photos about me |
Lab members:
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Jason Visser - Lab Manager and Research Scientist Associate MSc.Eng: Engineering Physics, Queen’s University BSc.Eng: Engineering Physics, Queen’s University About Me: I’m Canadian with a great love for technology, and a geologist by association. I’m married to a geologist and have worked for geologists and marine biologists for over 12 years. This allows me to travel the world through fieldwork/vacations with my wife, and focus on instrumentation and technology in the labs I work with. |
Postdoctoral Scholars
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Barra Peak - Postdoctoral Scholar (co-supervised with Danny Stockli) PhD: University of Colorado, Boulder BA: Harvard University About Me: Information coming |
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Megan Mueller - Postdoctoral Scholar (now NSF Postdoctoral Scholar at U of Arizona)
(co-supervised with Danny Stockli) PhD: University of Washington BS: University of Michigan About Me: My research focuses on using sedimentary rocks to reconstruct ancient subduction zones and continental collisions. I am interested in the links between tectonics, topography, paleogeography, and biogeography. I utilize a combination of field work, sedimentology, stratigraphy, geo-/thermochronology, and provenance proxies. I am a Provost's Early Career Postdoctoral Fellow in the Jackson School of Geosciences at the University of Texas at Austin. |
Graduate researchers
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Emily Launderville - PhD student BA: Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University About Me: I am from rural Northern Minnesota and a big fan of rock, rocks, and life on the lake. I'm happiest outside and I love accumulating passions ranging from building classic cars/motorcycles and cross country skiing to competitive sailboat racing. My research will focus on investigating the evolution of sedimentary basins and their tectonic context. |
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Jack St. Peter - PhD student BS: Biochemistry, Arizona State University About Me: I am a chemist-gone-geologist, originally from Phoenix, Arizona. My research will focus on the provenance of ophiolite-derived sediments. I love hiking, climbing, and anything to do with music, and I like to brew the occasional beer. |
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Olivia Wachob - PhD student Co-advised with Danny Stockli BS: Geology, Data Science , College of William & Mary About Me: I am a geoscience generalist passionate about the intersection of data science and geosciences, originally from Central New York. My research focuses on utilizing machine learning for detrital zircon geochronology to further understanding of provenance and zircon recycling dynamics. In my free time, I enjoy running and hiking. |
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Marcos Jimenez - MS student
Co-advised with Cornel Olariu BS: Geology, Sam Houston State University About Me: I am a first generation student from Houston, Texas. My passion for geology stems from the integrated science behind understanding the Earth. I hope to pursue a career in exploration supporting the rising demand for energy. My research will focus on stratigraphy, specifically on understanding the effects of permafrost to enhance our knowledge of Arctic delta evolution. |
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Griffin Clevenger - PhD Student BS: University of Michigan About Me: I am from a suburb North of Detroit, Michigan. I enjoy backpacking, road trips, swimming in idyllic hidden places, and doing essentially anything active or outside. My research will use concepts in sedimentology, stratigraphy, and geochemistry to reconstruct past depositional and environmental conditions. I'm a sucker for any and all music from the 60s to the 80s. |
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Jacqueline (Jackie) Epperson - PhD Student BS: Geological Sciences, Illinois State University MS: Geological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin About Me: I am from rural central Illinois, and am passionate about everything geology! I take every opportunity to get out and explore, in the field, in the lab, and in life. My research is focused on diving deeper into the characteristics of volcanic arc zircon that source sedimentary basins. I am also a motorcycle enthusiast. |
Undergraduate researchers
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Spencer Collins BS student: UT-Austin About Me: I am from Los Angeles, California. Excited about geology and anything that brings you to a nice outcrop. I love cooking, board games, and movies with rubber suit monsters. My research involves using well-log and seismic reflection data map permafrost in the subsurface near the Colville Delta, North Slope of Alaska. Project: Subsurface mapping of permafrost and permafrost change along the North Slope of Alaska |
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Hessa Patwa BS student: UT-Austin About me: I am from San Antonio, Texas, and am enthusiastic about being outdoors chasing a geologic mystery. I enjoy playing soccer, basketball, and swimming in oceans with big waves. Project: Concentration and fractionation of rare earth elements in the San Francisco Bay and outer coast. |
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Rachel Kramer BS student: Colorado School of Mines - Applied Mathematics and Statistics with a Data Science concentration 2025 RTX Summer Internship at UT-Austin About me: I am from Lyons, Colorado, and love to ski and hike in the mountains. I also enjoy playing the alto saxophone and reading. I am passionate about using data to address real-world problems and exploring mathematical patterns in nature. Project: Quantifying Broken Zircon Grain Frequency during Mineral Separation: A Case Study from the Colorado River, Texas |
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Abby McAlanis BS student: UT-Austin About me: I am from Dallas, Texas, and I love to be outdoors (but maybe not in the rain). I enjoy swimming, bowling, and exploring new places to visit in Austin. Project: Carbon isotope stratigraphy and geochronology of the Great Valley forearc basin, California |
Previous graduate students:
Fernando Rey - PhD (UT-Austin, completed 2025): A Multi-Scale Study of Retreating Accretionary Margins in the Patagonian Andes and the Japanese Islands
Jacqueline Epperson - MS (UT-Austin, completed 2023 - Now a PhD student in the group)
Mingang Hao - PhD (CUGB, visiting student at UT-Austin, completed 2024): Supervised with Professor Chengshan Wang (CUGB): Sedimentology, provenance, and stratigraphic architectural of the Xigaze Forearc Basin: Linking forearc basin response to early uplift in Tibet
Nick Gross-Almonte - MS (Stanford, completed 2023): Co-advised with Steve Graham: Detrital zircon provenance links between outcrop and subsurface, Rocas Verdes and Magallanes-Austral basins, Patagonia
Colin White - MS (Stanford, completed 2020): Co-advised with Steve Graham: Sedimentology and Provenance of the Norton Basin, Offshore Alaska: Insight into the Paleogene Evolution of the Paleo-Yukon Drainage System
Fernando Rey - PhD (UT-Austin, completed 2025): A Multi-Scale Study of Retreating Accretionary Margins in the Patagonian Andes and the Japanese Islands
Jacqueline Epperson - MS (UT-Austin, completed 2023 - Now a PhD student in the group)
Mingang Hao - PhD (CUGB, visiting student at UT-Austin, completed 2024): Supervised with Professor Chengshan Wang (CUGB): Sedimentology, provenance, and stratigraphic architectural of the Xigaze Forearc Basin: Linking forearc basin response to early uplift in Tibet
Nick Gross-Almonte - MS (Stanford, completed 2023): Co-advised with Steve Graham: Detrital zircon provenance links between outcrop and subsurface, Rocas Verdes and Magallanes-Austral basins, Patagonia
Colin White - MS (Stanford, completed 2020): Co-advised with Steve Graham: Sedimentology and Provenance of the Norton Basin, Offshore Alaska: Insight into the Paleogene Evolution of the Paleo-Yukon Drainage System
Previous Undergraduate Researchers:
Sebastian Lopez (UT-RGV - 2024 RTX program): Early Cretaceous chemostratigraphic framework in southern Patagonia
Julia Daniel (Central Michigan University - 2023 RTX program): Linking Early Cretaceous ocean basin records in the southern Patagonian Andes
Isabel Held (Scripps College): Sedimentological characterization of the Colville Delta region.
Esha Krishnan (UT-Austin): Decoupling weathering and provenance changes in sedimentary geochemical records
Raymond Luong (UT-Austin - Champions of Diversity program): Sediment routing and sand mining sustainability in San Francisco Bay, CA
Catalin Hernandez (U of Houston - RTX program): Global compilation of supra-subduction zone ophiolites
Anurag Kulkarni (UT-Austin): Mudstone geochemistry in the Great Valley Group, California
Bennie Hesser (Stanford - SESUR program): Geochemical Signals of Early Mountain Building in the Southern Patagonian Andes
Jasmine Lizardo (Stanford) - SESUR program): Carbon isotope chemostratigraphy of the Rocas Verdes Basin
Jason Swanepoel (Stanford - SESUR program): Provenance Trends and Sedimentation Rates of the Rocas Verdes Basin, Patagonia
Mariah Jenkins (Pomona-Pitzer - SURGE program): Tracing Ocean Anoxia in the Early Cretaceous Rocas Verdes Basin, Southern Patagonia
Anthony Edgington (UT-Austin - SURGE program): Source to Sink Evolution of the Oligocene–Pliocene Alaskan Interior - Bering Sea Sediment Routing System
Sebastian Lopez (UT-RGV - 2024 RTX program): Early Cretaceous chemostratigraphic framework in southern Patagonia
Julia Daniel (Central Michigan University - 2023 RTX program): Linking Early Cretaceous ocean basin records in the southern Patagonian Andes
Isabel Held (Scripps College): Sedimentological characterization of the Colville Delta region.
Esha Krishnan (UT-Austin): Decoupling weathering and provenance changes in sedimentary geochemical records
Raymond Luong (UT-Austin - Champions of Diversity program): Sediment routing and sand mining sustainability in San Francisco Bay, CA
Catalin Hernandez (U of Houston - RTX program): Global compilation of supra-subduction zone ophiolites
Anurag Kulkarni (UT-Austin): Mudstone geochemistry in the Great Valley Group, California
Bennie Hesser (Stanford - SESUR program): Geochemical Signals of Early Mountain Building in the Southern Patagonian Andes
Jasmine Lizardo (Stanford) - SESUR program): Carbon isotope chemostratigraphy of the Rocas Verdes Basin
Jason Swanepoel (Stanford - SESUR program): Provenance Trends and Sedimentation Rates of the Rocas Verdes Basin, Patagonia
Mariah Jenkins (Pomona-Pitzer - SURGE program): Tracing Ocean Anoxia in the Early Cretaceous Rocas Verdes Basin, Southern Patagonia
Anthony Edgington (UT-Austin - SURGE program): Source to Sink Evolution of the Oligocene–Pliocene Alaskan Interior - Bering Sea Sediment Routing System