Current Personnel
Taylor Kinchen
Graduate Museum Technician
Taylor is a graduate student in the Museum Studies program. Through the MSB she hopes to gain insightful experience into current collection management practices that will become valuable resources for her future career in vertebrate collections management.
Audrey Vanderhee
Undergraduate Museum Technician
Audrey is an undergraduate biology student with an interest in wildlife biology and zoonotic diseases. Her time at the MSB has given her hands on experience and knowledge in her field and deepened her love for biology!
Sophia Aguilar
Undergraduate Museum Technician
Sophia is currently studying to major in Biology to pursue her passion for working with animals, either in zoology or veterinary practices. She believes her involvement at the MSB will lead to even greater things for both the museum and her future!
Zakhiah Kanye
Undergraduate Museum Technician
Zakhiah is a Biology undergrad. Her interests are in poisonous plants and in emerging and high-risk pathogenic diseases in wildlife. She is excited to learn about the creative ways that the specimens can teach us about adaptability in wildlife.
Aliya Fagan
Undergraduate Museum Technician
Aliya is a junior at UNM studying biology with a focus in mammalogy, herpetology, and ecology. She's been interested in those topics since childhood. She plans to gain practical and hands-on experience at the MSB and hopes to work with the ABQ BioPark before persuing a master's degree.
Katie Rielage
High School Volunteer
Katie is a junior at Bosque School studying her favorite animal, North American porcupines, and learning radio-collaring capture procedures. She is interested in the MSB to gain skills needed to pursue a career in veterinary medicine and wildlife biology.
Makina Rush
Volunteer
Makina graduated in 2023 with a BS in Psychology and a minor in Anthropology. Her passion is functional and alternative medicine, which she intends to use for healing the mind, body, and soul. She also dabbles in curating sustainable fashion and forgotten treasures!
Shaya Kaviratne
Undergraduate Volunteer
Shaya is a biology major who is studying to become a veterinarian doctor. She is gaining some experience in the Division of Mammals as her first step in achieving that goal.
Lucas Ward
Undergraduate Museum Technician
Lucas is an undergrad at UNM. He loves animals and spending time outdoors. He is interested in the MSB as a way to learn the skills necessary to study and eventually work in the conservation and wildlife field.
Olivia Cole
Undergraduate Volunteer
Olivia is pursuing a BS in Anthropology with a concentration in Human Biology and a minor in Biology. She hopes to use the skills she learns from her classes and time at the MSB to pursue a graduate education in forensic anthropology.
Bryce Bannerman
Undergraduate Volunteer
Bryce is an undergrad at the University of New Mexico, studying for a degree in environmental sciences. He mostly works on specimen prep and hopes to use experience and knowledge gained here in his future career.
Elizabeth Weil
Volunteer
Elizabeth is a retired Psychiatry Professor at UNM who specialized in treatment of people with schizophrenia and adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities. She has a history of collecting bones in the wild and loves learning. Elizabeth is also a ceramicist.
Angela Encinas
Undergraduate Volunteer
Angie is currently a biology student with an interest in wildlife rehabilitation and ecology, as well as the conservation of natural habitats. She love animals and hopes to pursue a career working hands-on with wildlife in the field. She's fascinated by how animals interact with their environments, and enjoys learning new things every day. Volunteering at MSB will help her gain hands-on experience and confidence to work with new and unfamiliar types of animals.
Mikayla Ranspot
Volunteer
Mikayla Ranspot is a recent graduate from UNM with a double major in Biology and Earth & Planetary Science. She is currently acting as the Project Assistant and Student and Outreach Coordinator for CHANGES and ARID. She is developing a research project titled "Assessing the Nutritional Stress of Gray Whales in Response to Mortality Events" which will be published later this year.
Sierra Necessary
Volunteer
Sierra is a former environmental educator, interpretive ranger, and wildlife technician. She has worked for universities and federal agencies across the US. She loves the outdoors and camping with her family. She hopes to one day pursue her masters focusing on mammalian or reptile species. Her goal is to become a federal wildlife biologist.
Isabel Robertson
Undergraduate Volunteer
Isabel is an undergraduate studying biology here at the University of New Mexico. Originally from Albuquerque, she is passionate about our native landscapes and wildlife. She hopes to peruse a career in Wildlife Biology and loves getting involved with research, lab work, and fieldwork whenever possible.
Magdalena Rodriguez
Undergraduate Volunteer
Maggie is an undergraduate student studying population health with a minor in biology. Her current interests are in zoonotic diseases and environmental contaminants and how these issues affect the health and livelihoods of different populations. Volunteering at MSB will help her gain new insights and hands-on experience working with mammalian specimens.
Josie Fernandez
Undergraduate Volunteer
Alexander Preciado
High School Volunteer
Alex a high school senior and has always loved learning about life and how it works. He's hoping to pursue a future in marine biology or other field of biology. He believes working at MSB will help him achieve his goals and give him experience to succeed in college and in his career.
Khayden Preston
Undergraduate Volunteer
Khayden is an undergraduate student with a double major in Mathematics and Earth & Planetary Sciences. He aspires to be a teacher in both areas of his study, hoping to learn all that he can to help his future students and inspire them to go as far as possible.
He volunteers at MSB to help further his research experience.
Abriella Romero
High School Volunteer
Abby is a high school senior who loves music, plants, and animals. She is volunteering at the MSB to help fuel her passion for working with animals and to explore future career paths. She hopes to become a taxidermist someday. But she is also interested in auto and diesel mechanics.
Joel Norris
High School Volunteer
