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AAEAAQAAAAAAAAWHAAAAJDAwZmExMGExLWY5ZDgtNDkwMy1iNDAzLTZjNTY4MWNkOTdkYwTwo University of Wisconsin Oshkosh alumni dove into groundwater research and earned awards for their presentations at the 2016 National Ground Water Association (NGWA) Groundwater Summit last spring in Denver, Colorado.

Matthew Hiebing and Katelyn Kane, both 2014 graduates, received Farvolden Awards of $1,000 from The National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation. The awards, given in honor of the late Robert N. Farvolden, are based on quality of presentation, content and demonstrated insight on their topic.

Hiebing presented his poster “Combining Geochemistry and Geophysics to Pinpoint Sources of Salinity in the Rio Grande and the Relationship to Faults,” while Kane presented her paper “Water Quality Impacts of Tourism in Quintana Roo, Mexico.”

katelynkaneKane, of Clinton, is a graduate student at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.

Hiebing, of Midland, Texas, just graduated with a master’s degree in geology from the University of Texas at El Paso. He currently works as a geoscientist intern at Apache Corporation, evaluating a rock formation in the Northern Midland Basin.

“My main task is to evaluate whether there is any drilling potential in the area,” Hiebing said. “To do this, I use a host of different data types, including 3-D seismic, various well logs and petrophysical analysis.”

Hiebing said his education at UWO helped him get into graduate school and led him to his current intern position. He said the UWO geology department and professors Eric Hiatt and Jennifer Wenner were influential on his college career.

“Hiatt was the one who convinced me to switch to geology from environmental studies,” Hiebing said. “I did my research with Wenner. She really pushed me to continue my education in geology and made sure that I did all the rights things to get into graduate school.”

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