Meet the Fall 2024 Wingate University Interns

Hi everyone! My name is Sasha Fongging, and I’m a 19-year-old senior at Wingate University, majoring in Environmental Biology. My immediate goals are to graduate from Wingate and pursue a graduate degree in zoology. Ultimately, I aspire to become a zoologist or contribute to conservation efforts. I was particularly drawn to the Carolina Wildlands Foundation’s internship due to its emphasis on fieldwork and hands-on learning. This will be my first time interning at the property. This semester I will be conducting a research project on the seasonal behaviors and locations of the Northern Bobwhite Quail and Eastern Meadowlarks. I hope to gain valuable experience in keeping detailed field journals and mastering specialized terminology during my time here.

Hello, my name is James Pittman, and I am a senior at Wingate University majoring in Environmental Biology. After graduating my plans are to get my masters in field research/zoology. I first interned here at Carolina Wildlands Foundation in the Fall of 2023. During that time, I studied benthic macroinvertebrates and phenology. Being out here at the Southern 8ths Field Station was so inspiring and motivating that I decided to apply again for another internship. After being awarded this internship a second time I have decided to focus my research on Striped Skunks. The infrequent behavior of the Striped Skunks on the game camera caught my attention because there will be evidence of one on the cameras, but we may not see one for another week or month. I want to study what we can learn about this species to better understand why their behavior is so irregular. I hope to gain more field experience my second time here and apply my interest/passion to my research.

My name is Charles Hawkins. I’m 37 years old and a junior at Wingate, majoring in Environmental Biology. I don’t currently have a specific career in mind, my only goal is getting to take part in work that positively impacts the environment. This is a big reason why I applied for this internship. I am so eager to get some hands-on experience and get a better understanding of what I am most passionate about. Because as of right now so many areas of study sound equally appealing to me. This is my first time interning at Southern 8ths and for my research topic I will be studying native butterfly host plants. The goal is to understand the status of these plants, and how their population size can be increased to support larger populations of butterflies. From this internship I hope to gain a better understanding of how field research works. Specifically, posing research topics, identifying the best way to answer questions, and applying the information found in a way that is beneficial to the environment or further research.