Sophie Stiles

Biography

Sophie is a Ph.D student in the Belmont-Murphy lab. Her research focuses on how wildfire severity and frequency relate to forest recovery and sediment delivery. Sophie earned a Masters in Teaching Secondary Science from Western Governor’s University and taught high school biology for 5 years. She started an outdoor club for her students and was an assistant coach for cross country and track. Before beginning her Ph.D., Sophie spent two summers researching the effects of a hyper-abundant deer population on forest community composition in the San Juan Islands, in partnership with Seattle Pacific University. True to her Oregon roots, Sophie enjoys hiking, trail running, skiing, and climbing in her free time.