- About
- With 500+ faculty, staff and students and three campus locations, the Batten School & VIMS are equipped to tackle pressing challenges through research, education and advisory service.
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- Research & Advisory
- Purple marsh crabs are significantly disrupting carbon cycling in salt marshes along the East Coast of the U.S., according to a study led by Batten School & VIMS scientists.
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- Batten School
- The R. Todd Stravitz Scholars Program will provide full tuition support for students pursuing the new bachelor’s degree in coastal & marine sciences at the Batten School & VIMS.
  
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- Engage
- Popular, free camps enable rising third through eighth graders to learn about the Chesapeake Bay, coastal ecosystems and environmental stewardship.
  
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- News & Events
- National TRAP Program funds large-scale cleanup of discarded fishing gear, first round of subawards totaling more than $1.4M supports 11 projects focused on removing derelict fishing gear from coastal waters in nine U.S. states and Palau.
  
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- Giving
- As an expression of parental pride in their daughter, Taylor Spencer ‘83 and Martha Spencer recently established an undergraduate field research endowment at the Batten School & VIMS.
  
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Multidisciplinary Research Sections

Jan McDowell

Associate Professor

Email: [[mcdowell]]
Phone: (804) 684-7263
Office: Chesapeake Bay Hall 222
Section: Natural Resources

Education

B.S. University of Iowa
Ph.D. College of William and Mary

About

Our research interests are in the areas of population genetics, conservation genetics, systematics, molecular ecology and evolutionary biology. We use molecular markers study the forces that shape and maintain population structure in the marine realm. Many of our research questions ultimately focus on the effects of genetic structure on the management and conservation of marine species.