Hannah Colwell
Hannah Colwell
Education
B.S. Marine Sciences - University of New England 2012 - 2016
Professional History
Research Assistant I at National Xenopus Resource, Marine Biological Laboratory - April 2017 - September 2020
Biological Technician at NOAA Woods Hole Science Aquarium through IBSS - September 2020 - September 2022
Research Assistant II at Roberson Lab, Marine Biological Laboratory - December 2022 - May 2023
Oyster Hatchery Technician at Milford Laboratory through AIS - May 2023 - Present
It was on a sunny afternoon the summer before Hannah’s freshman year of high school when her general liking for science turned into a full blown passion for aquatic life. Waist deep in water, she watched a comb jelly glittering in the sunlight on her hand and she decided she wanted to spend her life working with aquatic animals. She moved to Woods Hole and spent a few years at the NXR, helping care for transgenic, mutant, and wild type African Clawed Frogs that scientists around the world would use for their research. From there, she went to the Woods Hole Science Aquarium, a unique place where patrons could see the behind the scenes and interact directly with the staff as they cared for the animals. She worked with seals, a diamondback terrapin, several species of local fish, lobsters, spider crabs, and other invertebrates. Her crowning achievement was putting the first jellyfish on display in the aquarium’s known history, bringing her teenage dream full circle.
After that, she spent some time working with coral and macroalgae, assisting in research for an algae farm to figure out what exposure to nutrients was sufficient to boost growth. She has now moved back to Connecticut and is working as part of the new Northeast Oyster Breeding Center team at the Milford Lab.