Dr. Samantha Brooks
Dr. Samantha Brooks came to Cornell in early 2008 as an Assistant Professor in the
Department of Animal Science. Previously, Dr. Brooks was working at the
University of Kentucky, where she obtained her doctorate degree and completed a two year
post-doctorate. In addition to her research with Equine Genetics, she is teaching the Animal Science 2650 class, Equine Biology and Management.
Graduate Students:
Ann Staiger
Ann joined the Brooks Lab in August of 2010 as a Ph.D. candidate. She earned her B.S. in Animal Science at Oklahoma State University and continued on at OSU to complete her M.S. in Animal Breeding and Genetics in 2009. Ann has previously studied genes that control fat deposition in cattle and milk production and muscle development in sheep. Originally from Maryland, Ann’s family continues to breed and raise Tennessee Walking Horses in Tennessee. With her strong background in gaited horses, Ann has now begun to study the genetics of gait in all breeds. She is pictured here with her Tennessee Walker gelding, Skip.
Heather Holl
Heather is a Ph.D. student who started in the Fall 2009. She graduated in June 2009 from Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio with a B.S. in Equine Science Preveterinary/Pregraduate Studies and Molecular Biology. Her undergraduate Honors work was with the brindle coat color in horses. Continuing her work in coat color, Heather is currently studying white coat color patterns in horses. She is pictured here with one of Otterbein's school horses, Echo.
Administrative Support:
Victoria Badalamenti
Vicki has been the administrative assistant for the Brooks Lab since June 2008. She graduated from SUNY Fredonia with a B.S. in both Business Administration and Economics and has worked for Cornell University since October 2004. In addition to our lab, Vicki provides administrative support to the Animal Science beef and goat extension as well as our sheep program and state and national 4-H programs. Though new to horses, Vicki is already a fan of Dora, one of our mares used for the AnSci2650 class. Vicki is located in 114 Morrison and will be answering all calls for the Brooks lab.
Undergraduates:
Alexander Thomson
Alexander joined the Brooks Lab in February 2011 as a freshman majoring in Animal Science and Biology.
Originally from Northumberland, England, Alexander learned to ride hunter-jumpers when he moved to Louisville, Kentucky during middle school. Now a member of Cornell’s polo team, he has been a horseman ever since. Alexander is currently exploring equine hindgut microbiology and plans to pursue a degree in veterinary medicine after graduating in 2014.
Janelle Slutsky
Janelle joined the Brooks lab in February 2011 as a junior majoring in Animal Science. She expects to graduate in the spring of 2012 and plans on pursuing a degree in veterinary medicine. Janelle is currently working on the Metabolic Study. She is pictured here with a Thouroughbred, Saddler.
Taylor Baird
Taylor joined the Brooks lab in January 2011 as a junior majoring in biology with a concentration in Neurobiology and Behavior. She is graduating in May 2012 and will be applying to dental school. Taylor is from Littleton, Colorado and is pictured here with Pistol, a horse from her job this past summer in which she gave tours of the Rocky Mountain National Park on horseback.
Nicole SanGiacomo
Nicole joined the Brooks lab in August of 2010 as a sophomore. She is a prospective undergraduate Honors student and is currently an Animal Science major. Nicole expects to graduate in the spring of 2013 and hopes to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. She began participating in English show jumping and hunt seat when she was ten years old, and continues to show year-round. Nicole is pictured here with her horse, Strictly Business, otherwise known as, “Quincy”.
Rachel Evanowski
Rachel, like Nicole, joined the Brooks Lab in August 2010 as a sophomore. She is majoring in Biology with a concentration in Animal Physiology. Rachel is originally from Easton, PA, and is hoping to attend veterinary school after her anticipated graduation in Spring 2013. She is pictured here with one of Cornell’s research mares, Lynx.
Carla Stoffel
Carla joined the Brooks Lab in January 2010 as a sophomore. She is an Animal Science major and expects to graduate in the spring of 2012. She was born and raised in Zurich, Switzerland and moved to New York, where she currently resides, when she was eight years old. After spending a summer at a farm where she cared for horses and took riding lessons, Carla gained a new found love of horses. Since her arrival at Cornell in fall of 2009, she has been working at the Oxley Equestrian Center as a barn hand. Carla plans on pursuing a career in veterinary medicine when she graduates. She is currently studying the genetics of obesity and metabolism in horses.
Lab Alumni:
Brooke Filer
Brooke graduated in January 2011 and is now working as a lab technician at Cornell University. She studied genes involved with the size study.
Lauren Neuendorf
Lauren graduated in 2011 with her BS and is pursuing a DVM at Cornell University. She studied the microbial ecology of the equine hindgut in collaboration with Dr. Burt Staniar from Penn State.
Bethany Austin
Bethany assisted us on several different projects to gain genetic research experience.She currently works as an LVT, animal technician and lab assistant in Cornell University Veterinary Medical School.
Caroline Salter
Caroline joined the Brooks lab in the summer of 2009 as a Cornell University Havemeyer Fellow. Caroline worked on a project investigating the expression of genes related to mast cell inflammation and tissue degradation in lamina from horses diagnosed with laminitis. She is currently a veterinary student at The University of Georgia.
Caitlin Armstrong
Caitlin graduated in 2010 and is working for a biotech company in Maryland.
Her honors research work was looking at polymorphisms in MC4R and POMC genes in association with the metabolic study.
Nicole Gabreski
Nicole graduated in May 2010 and is now pursuing a Ph.D. at the University of Michigan.
Her honors work resulted in a genetic test for Lavender Foal Syndrome in Arabians, now available through the Animal Health Diagnostic Center.
Elissa Maslyn
Elissa graduated in 2009
and is currently pursuing a DVM at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. She started research on our Splash White project.