Michigan Stormwater-Floodplain Association

Scholarship Award Recipients

 Two Recipients for 2005/2006

The Michigan Stormwater-Floodplain Association board of directors and officers have chosen to provide two $1,500 scholarships for the 2005/2006 school year scholarship.  The scholarships are granted to junior, senior, or graduate engineering students specializing in some study area related to stormwater-floodplain management.

The two selected candidates are Ms. Nancy-Jeanne Bachmann and Ms. Tracy Kerchkof.  Their backgrounds are given below.

Nancy-Jeanne Bachmann

Nancy-Jeanne Bachmann is a Master’s candidate in environmental engineering at Michigan Technological University.  She plans to evaluate the effectiveness of natural ecosystem functions in stormwater management such as the impact of decreasing stormwater contributions to overburdened storm sewers, recharging aquifers, minimizing stream degradation, and mitigating disastrous and costly flooding.

Ms. Bachmann received a baccalaureate in biology from Principia College in Elsah, Illinois, graduating with highest honors.  While at Principia, she worked on a wetland restoration project to stabilize the soils leading into a pond, mitigate sedimentation, and restore the natural ecosystem benefits of the wetland, while providing an educational tool for the campus community.  While a student, her summers were spent as a restoration intern for Citizens for Conservation (CFC), a non-profit conservation organization in a greater Chicago suburb.

After graduation, she worked part time as an associate ecologist at Applied Ecological Services, Inc. (AES), a Wisconsin-based environmental consulting/engineering firm that specializes in utilizing natural ecosystem benefits in soil stabilization, flood control, stream bank stabilization, stormwater management, and sedimentation control.  Her involvement in various projects included hydrologic monitoring, analysis and mitigation of stream impacts from development or construction, application of Best Management Practices (BMPs) to stormwater management, wetland mitigation banking, conservation developments, rain gardens, wetland delineations, and field reconnaissance.

Tracy Kerchkof

Tracy Kerchkof, of Roseville, Michigan, is a Biosystems Engineering student at Michigan State University.  Her professional interests include soil and water conservation engineering and animal waste management.  She served as a full time engineering intern for 8 months with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, during the summer and fall of 2004.  This past summer she worked full time with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, in Indiana and plans to return for a second season during the summer of 2006.  She will complete her Bachelor of Science in Biosystems Engineering in May 2007.

She received the Clarence and Thelma Hanson Scholarship Award for scholarship, leadership, and service to the Biosystems Engineering profession in the spring of 2004 and 2005.  She has been on the MSU Dean’s List every semester and has maintained a cumulative grade point average of 3.8/4.0.  Tracy is a College of Engineering Ambassador and is a member of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Scholars Program. 

Along with attending Michigan State University full-time, Tracy is assisting Dr. Tim Harrigan, of the Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Department, with research on issues such as how cropping and nutrient management impacts soil and water quality at the field and watershed level.  Outside of school, she enjoys cycling, hiking, and reading.

As she stated in her application essay: “My long term plan is to find a place to work that is challenging and dynamic enough to devote myself to for a long period of time.  I believe that working in outreach and working directly with landowners to help them with land use and other natural resource issues will offer me this challenge.”  Whatever she does, she would like to keep her focus on natural resource conservation in agricultural watersheds.

2005 Scholarship Recipient

Shane A. Bennett

Shane Bennett, of Clarkston, Michigan, is currently a junior at Michigan State University working towards a Bachelor of Science in Biosystems Engineering.  His interests include: natural resources protection, including wetland creation and conservation, and watershed management.  He hopes to find an internship with an environmental engineering consulting firm that would include some field experience during the summer of 2005.  He exemplifies a strong work ethic and enjoys working with a team.

He was named the Outstanding Sophomore in Biosystems Engineering in 2003/2004 and received the Howard and Esther McColly Scholarship for Excellence in Biosystems Engineering in the fall of 2004.  He has remained on the Dean’s List since his first semester at MSU and has a cumulative grade point average of 3.9/4.0.

He is a student member of the Society for Engineering in Agricultural, Food and Biological Systems (ASAE) and an active member of the MSU Chapter of Ducks Unlimited.  He is also an active member of the Michigan United Conservation Club.  He enjoys hunting and fishing and is a sports fan and participant.  He is an avid reader of political publications and the Wall Street Journal.

As summarized in his essay: “Watershed management is a valuable tool that serves as a great benefit to society.  The economic benefits from utilizing floodplains must be balanced with environmental sustainability and safety for life and property.  A healthy floodplain and stream system will maximize benefits to all interests; economic, recreational, and environmental.  A sound management plan, using the latest information and technology, will minimize human impacts on the watershed and minimize the watershed‘s adverse effects on humans.  An engineering approach to floodplain problems will produce successful results with such problems as: flooding, stream bank erosion, and point source and non-point source pollution.  My main goal is to find a job where I feel that I am making a difference, and this is an area that I feel passionate about.  I want to be able to see the benefits of my work; for both people and the environment.  I want to tackle problems that have social, economic, and environmental aspects.  I want to find sustainable solutions that take into account all these aspects.”