Current Lab Members

Stefanie A. Kroll, Ph.D.
Macroinvertebrate Taxonomist,
Freshwater Ecologist

Stef is Assistant Research Faculty for the Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department at Drexel University and Acting Macroinvertebrate Section Leader at the Patrick Center for Environmental Research. Dr. Kroll has been identifying insects from Spain, New York State and Pennsylvania for a decade.  She  has used several state, federal and international sampling and processing protocols. Stefanie has a PhD in ecology from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, NY, where her dissertation focused on aquatic macroinvertebrate communities affected by flow regulation, land use and potential changes due to climate change.  Her post-doctoral position was in Cornell University’s Department of Entomology. She completed a master’s degree at the University of Castilla-La Mancha in Albacete, Spain where she sampled and processed macroinvertebrate samples for the Regional Water Research Center to prepare reports for regional governmental agencies that managed aquatic resources.

Tanya Dapkey, M.S.
Entomologist,
Lab Manager 

Tanya manages all active projects and technicians as well as identify specimens to genus for current projects. She is also writing Watershed Ecology curriculum for local schools. 
Tanya  graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a MS in Environmental Studies. Her capstone, "Combining DNA Barcoding and Macroinvertebrate Sampling to Assess Water Quality" was completed in 2009. Her B.S. is in Biology from West Chester University. 
She worked for 15 years in the Janzen Lab at the University of Pennsylvania where she helped develop the Lepidoptera of the ACG DNA Barcode Database. 
She is also a Leadership Board Member of 500 Women Scientists and is the Co-Founder of the Philly Pod. Through this organization, Tanya has created and participated in numerous science outreach and advocacy events in the Philadelphia Area. 

Danielle Odom, M.S.
​Macroinvertebrate Taxonomist

Danielle is a taxonomist of benthic macroinvertebrates and a midge taxonomy specialist. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biological Science from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2008, with a thesis focused on terrestrial entomology. In 2014 she received her Master of Science in Environmental Studies from Green Mountain College, with a capstone portfolio focused on environmental education. Prior to joining the Watershed Ecology Department at the Patrick Center for Environmental Research of Drexel University in 2018, she was an educator for ten years.
 Outside of work she can be found cycling, camping, hiking, canoeing, playing disc golf, or spending time with friends and family. She is an accomplished long-distance hiker, having completed over 2,000 continuous miles of the Pacific Crest Trail in 2016. 

Bolortsetseg Erdenee
Macroinvertebrate Taxonomist,
Ph.D. Candidate

Boloroo is a PhD student within the department of Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Sciences at Drexel University working as a Research Assistant for the Academy’s Patrick Center for Environmental Research. With a focus on American as well as Mongolian macroinvertebrate fauna, Boloroo brings her mayfly expertise to the lab with nearly a decade of taxonomic experience.  Her doctoral work is a component of the NSF-funded MACRO project (www.macrorivers.org).  
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Maine, August 2019, at the Eagle Hill Institute for EPT Training
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Dr. Stef Kroll, Tanya Dapkey, Kathryn Christopher and Carol Collier attending Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed Forum, Oct 2019

Past Members 

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Brendan Marencin, B.S.
Former Field & Lab Technician

Brendan performed sampling and identification of aquatic macroinvertebrates to the genus level. He received a Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Biological Sciences from Drexel University in 2017. During his junior year he worked at the Patrick Center for his cooperative opportunity internship.

Meg O'Donnell, M.S.
Macroinvertebrate Taxonomist,
Former Lab Manager

Meg tracked and managed all active projects and technicians. She identified specimens to genus, reviewed identified taxa for quality control, and performed statistical analyses on results.
A Philadelphia native, Meg graduated from Drexel University with a MS. Her thesis focused on threshold analyses of macroinvertebrate communities in response to upstream land use and the practical application to natural resource management in the Delaware River Basin. Meg received her BA in earth systems and environmental studies from the University of Pennsylvania.
Christina Perella, Senior at Drexel, former Lab Technician

​Christina performed field and laboratory work, and identified macroinvertebrates to the family level. She worked in our lab for her cooperative opportunity internship in 2016.