Mckenzie Zapata: Eugenie Clark

When I received my fellowship acceptance, I knew my life would be changed forever. I recognized that the experience and knowledge that I would gain during my time as a Eugenie Clark Fellow would be something that I likely would not have had otherwise due to financial barriers in this field. As a female first-generation student who identifies with historically excluded groups, I have faced several hardships throughout my academic and early-career scientific journey. This fellowship acceptance meant absolutely everything to me because I knew that I would be able to fully exist in a safe space for an extended period of time. This also meant that I would get the chance to learn and grow with the support of so many amazing and diverse groups of people I would meet along the way.

During the fellowship, I had the opportunity to participate in fieldwork, education, outreach, and even attend a conference, along with many other extraordinary experiences. In doing so, I was surrounded by supportive mentors and worked alongside the other fellows who were selected this past summer. I am very grateful that I met so many memorable people and created lasting relationships that I will forever cherish and value. These experiences created a sense of community which I had been seeking for so long in this field. It was a wonderful feeling to be surrounded by so many supportive people who uplifted each other. I hope to carry this on beyond the fellowship and create these spaces for others throughout my academic and career journey. 
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I am currently a master’s student and have always had the desire to continue my education to earn a PhD to become a shark researcher, and eventually, a professor and mentor. After serving as a camp instructor at the MISS Summer Camp during the fellowship, I realized at that moment that my passion for teaching and mentoring was firmly established from that experience. This is something that I will always be grateful to MISS for, along with numerous other things. Despite the difficulties that some of us face in this field, MISS is a constant reminder that anything is possible if you put your mind to it, and I hope to inspire that in others as well. 
It was an absolute honor to be a Eugenie Clark Fellow and I would especially like to thank MISS, Havenworth Coastal Conservation, and Chicago Zoological Society’s Sarasota Dolphin Research Program for this opportunity. I will never forget all of the support, great memories, and experiences from my time as a Eugenie Clark Fellow.