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ESF Graduate Student Receives GREAT Award
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – June 23, 2025 - A graduate students from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) was among 38 students selected for the 2025 SUNY Graduate Research Empowering and Accelerating Talent (GREAT) award. Recognized as outstanding student researcher, Jeremiah Tennant will receive $7,500 in flexible funding for research expenses, professional development, and stipend supplements from the SUNY Office of Research and Economic Development.
Recipients of the SUNY GREAT Award have been honored by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Department of Defense.
Tennant is a doctoral student in ESF’s Department of Environmental Biology. He is researching how pollution affects reptiles and amphibians in New York state. His work focuses on two major pollutants: mercury and PFAS, a group of man-made chemicals found in many everyday products.
In one study, he is studying snapping and painted turtles in Central New York to see how their habitats and biology influence mercury levels in their bodies. In another, he’s studying wild frogs in the Adirondacks to understand what causes PFAS to build up in their systems.
Turtles and frogs play key roles in their ecosystems. When they absorb pollutants, those toxins can move up the food chain, potentially affecting other animals—including humans. By studying these species, Tennant hopes to better understand the risks pollution poses to entire ecosystems.
About SUNY ESF
The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) is dedicated to the study of the environment, developing renewable technologies, and building a sustainable and resilient future through design, policy, and management of the environment and natural resources. Members of the College community share a passion for protecting the health of the planet and a deep commitment to the rigorous application of science to improve the way humans interact with the world. The College offers academic programs ranging from the associate of applied science to the Doctor of Philosophy. ESF students live, study and do research on the main campus in Syracuse, N.Y., and on 25,000 acres of field stations in a variety of ecosystems across the state.