PHIL BARDEN - PI

Dr. Phillip Barden, originally from New Mexico and Arizona, is an evolutionary biologist interested in social insects and their fossil record. Dr. Barden received his bachelor's degree from Arizona State University, his PhD from the American Museum of Natural History, and completed his NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship at Rutgers University. He is involved in projects centered around patterns of diversity, ecological impact, and the evolution of complex behavior in some of nature’s greatest success stories: ants and termites. His uses social insects and fossil amber as systems for testing concepts related to the integration of paleontological and genetic data, as well as new analytical pipelines. [CV] [Webpage]

Lacie Newton – Postdoctoral Researcher

Lacie is a post-doctoral researcher working on the reconstruction of the phylogeny of the Hispaniola ants to test hypotheses about extinction selectivity. She was originally a pre-med student, but after taking a field biology course in Arizona, they were inspired to change courses to pursue an interest in spider morphology. They attended the University of California-Davis studying the speciation pattern and process of Mygalomorph spiders in Northern California. Before joining Barden Lab, Lacie was at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City where she studied the evolution and diversification dynamics of dragonflies using molecular data. Outside of the lab, Lacie enjoys going on hikes with their husky, Luna. They can be reached at ln233 [at] njit.edu

Gianpiero Fiorentino - PhD Candidate

Gianpiero is an NJIT PhD candidate interested in biogeography, systematics, and evolutionary relationships in ants. He completed his undergraduate degree at the National University of Colombia, studying the patterns of biodiversity of Neotropical ants using systematics and taxonomy. He was an assistant curator at the Institute of Natural Sciences through his undergraduate university. Gianpiero is a proud Latino and is leading an initiative in Colombia focused on engaging scientific learning in rural indigenous communities in the Amazon and the Pacific. Throughout his time at the lab, Gianpiero has led research focused on the biogeographic patterns of species distribution through deep time, focusing on islands. With his passion for teaching, he hopes to one day become a university professor and to continue working towards encouraging diversity and inclusion in STEM. He can be reached at gf6 [at] njit.edu & gpfiorentinoc [at] unal.edu.co. [Webpage]

Claire Bailey - PHD Student

Claire is a current PhD student at NJIT interested in ecology, evolution, and behavior, with a focus on eusocial organisms. She is originally from Mississippi and has earned a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Organismal Biology from Auburn University. Claire is a NSF Graduate Research Fellow, and she has previously worked on three-dimensional honey bee nest architecture and animal behavior at the Smith Bee Lab. At NJIT, she intends to study the only marine example of eusociality found in the Synalpheus genus of snapping shrimp. She can be reached at cb489 [at] njit.edu.

shrimps is bugs

Luke Bitting – Undergraduate Researcher

Luke is a second-year undergraduate pursuing a B.A. in Biology and a minor in chemistry. Originally from Pennsylvania, Luke enrolled in NJIT as a member of the Albert Dorman Honors College. Currently, Luke is working on an independent project to examine the morphology and evolutionary history of the Thaumatomyrmex genus within Hispaniola. Prior to his time at NJIT, Luke gained laboratory experience through a lab-intensive biotechnology course, where he performed analytical experiments on cells and biological molecules. This also served to solidify his interests in research. Outside of the lab, Luke is involved with the Society of Musical Arts as members of the wind ensemble and jazz band. Luke is considering pursuing a PhD and plans to be involved in more biological research in the future. He can be contacted at lrb24 [at] njit.edu.

Kristina Camia – Undergraduate Researcher

Kristina is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Biology and is a student in the Albert Dorman Honors College. She joined the lab in the spring of 2024 and assisted in 3D reconstruction of shrimp micro-CT scans. She is interested in the morphology of the shrimp claw, specifically comparing the major and minor chela and completed a project during her participation in the HSRI at NJIT. She is interested in art and likes to sketch when she’s not in the lab. She wants to go to graduate school in the next couple of years and continue to develop the skills she’s learned from the lab. She can be reached at kc634 [at] njit.edu

Prana Miryala – Undergraduate Researcher

Hi! My name is Prana and I am a 3rd year biology major aspiring for a career as a health professional. She joined the lab in February 2023 due to her interest in exploring morphology and the environmental sciences. Prana has been trained to use the 3D Slicer software to recompile CT scans on ants. Prana is incredibly interested in parasites and diseases that impede ants and hopes to study them. Being able to tie in her love for epidemiology and genetics into her ant research is what motivates Prana. Other than the lab, she is an active member of NJIT’s chapter of Hindu YUVA, and sings for Saavan, a South Asian acapella group. On the weekends, Prana actively works as an EMT and gets her well needed beauty sleep! She can be contacted at pjm57@njit.edu .

Roma Patel – Undergraduate Researcher

Roma is a pre-med third-year undergraduate student majoring in Biology with a concentration in Neurobiology and a minor in Psychology and Chemistry. She started her academic career at NJIT in the Albert Dorman Honors College. She joined the lab in the summer of 2023 and assisted in the 3D reconstruction of ants in amber through micro-CT scans. She is interested in the connection between neurobiology, behavior, and different animals and hopes to explore that through her lab work. Outside of school and the lab, she has been dancing for over a decade, specifically classical Bharatnatyam. Additionally, she advocates for minorities in healthcare pertaining to healthcare through social media. She does this through the organization “Colors for Coats” and her role as a co-director of communication. She can be reached at rap26 [at] njit.edu .

Saskia Trommelen – Undergraduate Researcher

Saskia is a second year undergraduate pursuing a double major B.S. in Biology and Math with a minor in Philosophy and Applied Ethics at NJIT. She joined the lab in February 2023 because of her interest in morphology and genetics. Currently, Saskia has been using 3D slicer to work on modeling micro-CT scans of ants in amber and Synalpheus shrimp. As a pre-med student hoping to specialize in genetics, Saskia hopes to explore connections between genetics and her current lab work. Outside of the lab, she is a performer in the NJIT concert-band as well as the theater program. She loves music, is part of the Radio Club WJTB at NJIT, and is a video game enthusiast. She is also CSLA representative in the NJIT Undergraduate Student Senate serving on the Academic Affairs and Student Affairs committees. Beyond her senate responsibilities, Saskia is Vice President of Equity and Belonging in her sorority and is currently a probationary EMT as she is in training for her certification. She can be reached at smt63 [at] njit.edu.

Brock Shahinian – Undergraduate Researcher

Brock is a third-year environmental science major. He is originally from New Jersey and chose NJIT for its research opportunities, attending on the Albert Dorman Honors College Scholarship. He currently works in the Urban Ecology lab at NJIT, where he has an independent project assessing differences in bee morphology in the brownfields and greenfields of NJ. In summer 2023, he participated in the NJIT BioSMART REU, uncovering mercury sorption behavior in two species of bacteria that could be used in mercury bioremediation. In summer 2024, he participated in the Cornell Summer Scholars Program assessing how fungal pesticides impact earthworm mortality and behavior in agricultural systems. In the Barden lab, he works with modern and amber ant samples from the Dominican Republic, helping evaluate morphological change over time within the Pheidole ant genus on Hispaniola. Brock may be reached at hrs4 [at] njit.edu.