[Honoree] Maren Mitch

Awarded annually since the 2000/2001 academic year, the Provost's Award for Exemplary Academic Achievement is awarded to a student who has a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5, has positively contributed to the Cal State Monterey Bay (CSUMB) learning community, and who academically and personally stands out.

This year's award recipient is Maren Mitch. Mitch grew up in Upland, CA in a single parent household. She describes her relationship with her mother as always been a great one. "Her support and encouragement has propelled me to work very hard and achieve the best. My mother has helped instill a confidence in me that I can achieve anything when I put my mind to it," said Mitch. Mitch describes her experience at CSUMB as being positive, "Classes have been challenging and end of semesters have been stressful, but I think these experiences have only further built my character." Aside from her regular classes, she served as a mentor to several of her peers, and a tutor in chemistry. Mitch is also a McNair Scholar and active participant in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Center (UROC).

Mitch is an ESTP major with a concentration in Marine and Coastal Ecology. "I have always had an affinity for the processes and structure of nature," she said as she recalls enjoyable childhood trips to aquariums with her mother. She acknowledges always having wanted to study marine science but realized a bigger interest in marine ecology when she began her core classes at CSUMB. It was through an internship with the Marine Landscape Ecology Lab in which Mitch conducted her own research on the sea star Pisaster Ochraceus, which also became her capstone project. "It involved very early hours, but there was a unique thrill at being out in the field by the ocean early in the morning when the sun rose," Mitch said.

"Maren exemplifies the highest level of academic accomplishment," said CSUMB Provost, Dr. Kathryn Cruz-Uribe. "Taking full advantage of opportunities for faculty mentoring and undergraduate research, she has studied the distribution of a predatory sea star around the Monterey Peninsula, making an important contribution the scientific literature on the ecology of intertidal communities."

Mitch is planning and looking forward to a cross-country move. Beginning fall 2011, she will begin the PhD program at Stony Brook University in New York. Mitch has been offered a full tuition fellowship and will begin work on her doctoral degree in Oceanography through the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. She recalls being excited when her mentor, Dr. Corey Garza, nominated her for the award and even further thrilled when she was chosen among the other seven nominated as the recipient. "It is certainly a great delight to honor our exemplary students," said Cruz-Uribe. When asked for her words of wisdom Mitch replied,

"The best advice that I can share with my fellow CSUMB students is that everyone needs to look for opportunities. If I had simply waited to be presented with great opportunities, instead of actively looking for them, then I would not be where I am now. I am developed into a strong student and person because of people that I have met and positive experiences in which I have participated."