EDUCATION

New York University and New York Botanical Garden
Biology PhD Candidate, 2019-Present

University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
BS in Plant Science, 2019

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

New York University, NYU Center for Genomics & Systems Biology, Coruzzi Lab
New York Botanical Garden, Graduate Studies Program
PhD Candidate, September 2019-Present
Unraveling the genetic basis behind the first evolution of seeds in Gymnosperms
Living Fossils: sequencing five Gymnosperm genomes (with the New York Plant Genomics Consortium)
EvoNet: phylogenomic analysis and plant collection in the Atacama Desert in Chile (with Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile)

New York Botanical Garden, Damon Little

NIH QBIST Intern, 2021
PPhEES: Plastid Phylogeny of Embryophytes on an Enormous Scale

USDA-ARS Cereal Disease Laboratory/UMN Department of Plant Pathology, Saint Paul, MN
Undergraduate Research Assistant and UROP Scholar, Kianian Lab, September 2015-December 2018
Biotic and abiotic stress tolerance; virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS); functional genomics

The Ohio State University, Department of Plant Pathology, Columbus, OH 
Summer Research Intern in Plant Pathology (SRIPP), Evolution of Fungal Ecology Lab/Slot Lab, Summer 2017
Evolution and functionality of fungal nitrate transporters; ID of Amanita genes; RNA viral discovery

University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Department of Horticultural Science, Saint Paul, MN
Undergraduate Research Scholar and Apprentice, Plant Metabolomics Lab/Hegeman Lab, March 2016-May 2017
Metabolic flux of nitrogen in Spirodela polyrhiza grown in light/dark, with/without sucrose

USDA-ARS NCGRP Plant Germplasm Preservation Research Unit, Fort Collins, CO
USDA Wallace-Carver Fellow, Summer 2014
Seed longevity in wild seeds stored for 65 years; storage methods for recalcitrant seeds

FIELD WORK EXPERIENCE

Chile (2023), Wyoming (2014), Colorado (2014)

TEACHING ASSISTANT EXPERIENCE

Population Genetics & Evolutionary Biology (grading), New York University, New York, NY
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Fall 2022

Fundamentals of Bioinformatics, New York University, New York, NY
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Spring 2022

Principles of Biology I, New York University, New York, NY
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Fall 2020

SELECTED HONORS & AWARDS

2024 QBIST BioBus Community Scientist Fellowship (NIH funded), New York University
2021 Graduate Student Presentation Award (Fifth Place), ASPB Northeastern Section 2021 Annual Meeting
2020 NIH Trainee, NYU Quantitative Biological Systems Training (QBIST), one of four selected
2019 Henry M. MacCracken Fellowship, New York University, five-year funding award
2018 UMN Department of Horticultural Science Travel Award, to attend Plant Biology 2018, Montreal, Canada
2018    UMN Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) Scholarship
2018    UROP Poster Distinction, research poster selected for year-long display in UMN University Libraries
2017    ASPB Conviron Scholar, one of 21 scholars selected globally and the only U.S. undergraduate
2017    Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Honor Society Associate Member
2017    Sigma Xi New Student Member Award (UMN Chapter), one of two selected
2016 Undergraduate Steering Committee Member, UMN Department of German, Scandinavian & Dutch
2016    Certificate of Achievement in Dutch, UMN Department of German, Scandinavian & Dutch
2016    UMN Department of Horticultural Science Travel Award, to attend Nitrogen 2016 in Montpellier, France
2016    TACC Summer Supercomputing Institute R Coding Award
2015    Gold Scholar Award, University of Minnesota, four-year academic scholarship for nonresidents
2015    Gold National Scholarship, University of Minnesota, four-year award for top 10% of class
2015    Dr. Laddie Elling Endowed Scholarship Fund, UMN CFANS four-year award for academics/leadership
2015    Vincent K. Bailey Scholarship Fund, UMN Department of Horticultural Science two-year award
2015    National Merit University of Minnesota Scholarship
2015    UMN Undergraduate Research Scholarship
2015    UMN CFANS Research Apprenticeship Program, by invitation
2015    World Food Prize Global Youth Institute Group Leader
2015    National AP Scholar
2015    National Merit Finalist and Scholar
2014    Mathematical Competition in Modeling (HiMCM) Successful Participant
2014    USDA Wallace-Carver Fellow, one of four high school students selected with 29 undergraduates
2014    World Food Prize Laureate Announcement Ceremony Invited Attendee, Washington, DC
2014    NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing National Runner-Up and Georgia Winner
2013    Mathematical Competition in Modeling (HiMCM) Successful Participant
2013    World Food Prize Global Youth Institute Delegate

LANGUAGES & CULTURE

English (native), Dutch (advanced), Spanish (intermediate), Korean (basic)

COMPUTER SKILLS

Programming/Shell Scripting: R, Python, Bash, Linux/UNIX, AWK, SQLite, Java, Perl (editing)

Scientific Tools: BLAST, DESeq2, InterProScan, Trinity, TNT, IQTree, OrthoFinder, BayesTraits, FigTree, MEGA11, Mesquite, ETE Toolkit, QUAST, Pilon, BUSCO, Excel; exposure to Paraview, MATLAB, SMRT Link

Other Skills: PowerPoint, Prezi, Photoshop, Illustrator, Krita, Blender, SketchUp, Maya, DaVinci Resolve, iMovie, Raspberry Pi

PUBLICATIONS

Gutierrez, RA, et al. (including Sondervan, VM). (2023). “Phylogenetically diverse wild plant species use common biochemical strategies to thrive in the Atacama Desert.” Journal of Experimental Botany. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erae117, bioRxiv Preprint. https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.08.25.554423

Stevenson, DW, et al. (including Sondervan, VM). (2023). “The genome of the Wollemi pine, a critically endangered living fossil unchanged since the Cretaceous, reveals extensive ancient transposon activity.” bioRxiv Preprint. https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.08.24.554647

Sondervan VM
, Zumajo-Cardona C and Ambrose B (2023). “How Seeds Shape Our World.” Front. Young Minds. https://doi: 10.3389/frym.2023.1065280

Evans, EM, Freund, DM, Sondervan, VM, Cohen, JD, Hegeman, AD (2018). “Metabolic patterns in Spirodela polyrhiza revealed by 15N stable isotope labeling of amino acids in photoautotrophic, heterotrophic, and mixotrophic growth conditions.” Frontiers in Chemistry. https://doi.org/10.3389/fchem.2018.00191

Sondervan, VM (non-peer reviewed 2013). “Indonesia: Concerns Regarding Corruption in Agriculture and the Way Forward.” World Food Prize, www.worldfoodprize.org

POSTER PRESENTATIONS

Sondervan, VM, Eshel, G, Frangos, S, Katari, M, Stevenson, DW, Ambrose, B, Little, DP, Zumajo, C, Varala, K, McCombie, RW, Coruzzi, G. “From Spores to Seeds: a Quantitative Genomics Approach to Unraveling the Genetic Basis Behind the First Evolution of Seeds in Primitive Gymnosperms” (2022) American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting, Portland, Oregon

Sondervan, VM, Liberatore, KL, Singh, JK, Kianian, SF. "Inducing Organellar DNA Variation in Brachypodium distachyon as a Model for Investigating Nuclear Cytoplasmic Interactions" (2018) American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting, Montreal, Canada

Sondervan, VM, Liberatore, KL, Kianian, SF. "Developmental Impact and Heritability of Induced Organellar DNA Variation in Brachypodium distachyon, a Model Organism for Wheat" (2018) University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Symposium

Sondervan, VM, Liberatore, KL, Kianian, SF. "Developmental Impact and Heritability of Induced Organellar DNA Variation in Brachypodium distachyon, a Model Organism for Wheat" (2018) University of Minnesota Department of Plant Pathology Awards Day Poster Session

Sondervan, VM, Liberatore, KL, Kianian, SF. "Developmental Impact and Heritability of Induced Organellar DNA Variation in Brachypodium distachyon, a Model Organism for Wheat" (2018) University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Undergraduate Research Symposium

Sondervan, VM, Evans, EM, Hegeman, AD. "Metabolic Flux of Nitrogen in S. polyrhiza With and
Without Sucrose" (2017) University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Undergraduate Research Symposium

SELECTED ORAL PRESENTATIONS

Sondervan, VM. “From Spores-to-Seeds: Gymnosperms provide insights into the genes driving ovule evolution” PowerPoint presented to: NYU Plant Labs Seminar; December 2023; New York NY

Sondervan, VM. “From spores to seeds: Gymnosperm insights into the evolutionary history of ovule genes” PowerPoint presented to: NYBG Science & Humanities Seminar; December 2023; Bronx NY

Sondervan, VM. “From Spores to Seeds: A quantitative genomics approach to unraveling the genetic basis behind the first evolution of seeds in primitive Gymnosperms” PowerPoint presented to: ASPB Northeastern Section 2021 Annual Meeting; October 2021; Virtual

Sondervan, VM. "Unraveling the genetic basis of seeds using Gymnosperms" PowerPoint presented to: the New York Botanical Garden Intern Symposium; August 2021; Virtual

Sondervan, VM, Eshel, G, Coruzzi, G. “From Spores to Seeds: A Quantitative Approach to Identify Genes Involved in Seed Evolution” PowerPoint presented to: the PhD Student Seminar Series at New York University; May 2021; Virtual

Sondervan, VM, Eshel, G, Coruzzi, G. "From Spores to Seeds: Finding the Genetic Basis of Ovule Evolution" PowerPoint presented to: the Coruzzi Lab and Huang Lab at New York University; September 2020; New York NY

Sondervan, VM, Lye, ZN, Purugganan, M. "Duplication and Copy Number Landscape in Oryza sativa" PowerPoint presented to: the Purugganan Lab at New York University; April 2020; New York NY

Sondervan, VM, Eshel, G, Coruzzi, G. "Genetic Basis of Ovule Evolution in Gymnosperms" PowerPoint presented to: Living Fossils meeting of the New York Plant Genomics Consortium with members from New York University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, the New York Botanical Garden, Johns Hopkins University, the American Museum of Natural History, and Purdue University; January 2020; New York NY

Sondervan, VM, Huang, C. "Do SPL Motifs Cluster According to Phylogeny?" PowerPoint presented to: the Huang Lab at New York University; November 2019; New York NY

Sondervan, VM, Slot, JC. "Analyzing Function and Diversity of Nitrate Transporters in Dikarya Fungi" PowerPoint presented to: The Ohio State University Department of Plant Pathology; August 2017; Columbus OH

CO-AUTHOR OF PRESENTATIONS

Ramakrishnan, S, Mendivil Ramos, O, Sondervan, V, Eshel, G, Varala, K, Kolokotronis, SO, delaBastide, M, de Santis Alves, C, Jenike, K, Ranallo-Benavidez, TR, Frangos, S, Zumajo-Cardona C, Little, DP, Katari, M, Richardson, M, Croft, L, McPherson, H, Rossetto, M, Goodwin, S, Ambrose, B, Martienssen, R, Stevenson, DW, Coruzzi, G, McCombie, R, Schatz, MC. “Reconstructing the genome of the living fossil conifer Wollemia nobilis using ONT long-read sequencing technology” (2021) Genome Informatics, Virtual (Poster)

Ramos, OM, Ramakrishnan, S, de Santis Alves, C, Sondervan, VM, Zumajo-Cardona, C, Kramer, M, Goodwin, S, Frangos, S, Eshel, G, Jenike, K, Ranallo-Benavide, R, Ambrose, B, Little, DP, Kolokotronis, SO, Varala, K, Katari, M, Richardson, M, Croft, L, McPherson, H, Rossetto, M, Schatz, M, Martienssen, R, Stevenson, DW, Coruzzi, G, McCombie, WR. "Genomics of the recently endangered Wollemi pine, Wollemia nobilis" (2021) Biodiversity Genomics, Virtual (Oral)

Evans, EM, Sondervan, VM, Freund, DM, Hegeman, AD. "Examination of Nitrogen Metabolism in Spirodela polyrhiza Grown in Light and Dark Conditions Using K-means Clustering Assisted Metabolic Flux Estimation" (2017) American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting, Honolulu HI (Poster)

SCIENCE OUTREACH & SERVICE

QBIST BioBus Community Scientist Fellow, 2024            
Presenter for BioBus visit to NYU CGSB (high school & undergraduate students), July 2023
Prelims Judge (Software & Robotics), The Terra New York City STEM Fair, Preliminary Round, NY, February 2023
Finals Judge (Plant Sciences), The Terra New York City STEM Fair, Finals Round, NY, March 2022
Prelims Judge (Software & Robotics), The Terra New York City STEM Fair, Preliminary Round, NY, February 2022
Lunch Matrix Participant, New York University GSAS Department of Biology, NY, 2021-2022
Committee Member, New York University GSAS Department of Biology, NY, 2020-2021
Finals Judge (Plant Sciences), The Terra New York City STEM Fair, Finals Round, New York, NY, March 2021
Recruitment Meeting Presenter, New York University GSAS Department of Biology, February 2021
Prelims Judge (Plant Sciences), New York City Science and Engineering Fair, Preliminary Event, NY, March 2020
Plant Biology 2018 Volunteer, Montreal, Canada, July 2018
Author, Teaching Module for Plant Genetic Resources (UMN Honors Project), Minneapolis, MN, 2018
ASPB Conviron Scholar, 2017-2018
RFC Research Officer and Researcher, U Students Like Good Food, Minneapolis, MN, 2016-2018
Market Scientist Volunteer, Market Science, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sept. 2016
Group Leader, World Food Prize Global Youth Institute, Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 2015
Founder, Potcake Evaluation and Research Study (Potcake EARS), Atlanta, Georgia, 2011-2015
FUN Volunteer, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, Georgia, 2010-2015

CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE

Plant Biology 2022, Portland, Oregon
ASPB Northeastern Section 2021 Annual Meeting, Virtual
International Plant Systems Biology 2021, Virtual
Plant Biology 2018, Montreal, Canada
2018 Food & Agribusiness National Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing 2016, Houston, Texas
Nitrogen 2016, EMBO Conference on the Nitrogen Nutrition of Plants, Montpellier, France
Borlaug Dialogue 2015, Norman E. Borlaug International Symposium, Des Moines, Iowa
Borlaug Dialogue 2013, Norman E. Borlaug International Symposium, Des Moines, Iowa

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

NYBG Artificial Intelligence Journal Club, October 2021-Present
ComSciCon-NY 2021 (2-day workshop), May 2021
NYU Science Communication Workshop (4-week workshop), Fall 2019
Utrecht Summer School Multidisciplinary Game Research (1-week course), August 2018
Bioinformatics Workshop: Data Carpentry/RNA-Seq Analysis/Custom ePlant (1-day workshop), July 2018
TACC Summer Supercomputing Institute: Visualization and Data Analysis (1-week workshop), Aug. 2016
Minnesota Supercomputing Institute Tutorial: Introduction to Linux, Summer 2016
Codecademy Python, Spring 2015
USDA Washington Leadership Symposium for Wallace-Carver Fellows (4-day program), Summer 2014
University of Michigan Model Thinking (12-week Coursera course), Fall 2013

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS     

American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB)
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society