Meteor impacts may have helped spark life on Earth, creating hot, chemical-rich environments where the first living cells could take shape, according to research integrated by a recent Rutgers University graduate. “No one knows, from a scientific perspective, how life could have been formed from an early Earth that had no life,” said Shea Cinquemani, […]
Alumni
Senior Shelin Pompey SEBS’26 Brings Living Wall Back to Life Through Experiential Learning
What began as a grey, aging installation inside the Floriculture Greenhouse on the George H. Cook campus has been transformed into a vibrant, living work of art—thanks to the vision, persistence and creativity of Rutgers graduating student Shelin Pompey. A senior majoring in plant science with a concentration in horticulture and turf industry at the […]
SEBS Names Dynamic Alumnus and Veterinarian Adam Christman as 2026 Convocation Speaker
The School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) at Rutgers University has announced that Adam Christman, Cook College Class of 2000, will return to campus as the 2026 Convocation Speaker—bringing with him not only a distinguished veterinary career, but a vibrant, media-savvy voice that resonates with millions. Christman will address more than 750 graduating seniors, […]
Rutgers Hosts 35th Annual Turfgrass Symposium
The Rutgers Center for Turfgrass Science hosted its 35th Annual Turfgrass Symposium on March 19, bringing together faculty, staff, students, researchers and industry leaders for a day of collaboration, innovation and knowledge exchange. Held at Rutgers University–New Brunswick, the symposium highlighted the breadth of turfgrass research underway across the university while reinforcing Rutgers’ leadership in […]
From Cook College to Shark Tank: Michael Silva CC’96 and the Game That Went National
For Michael Silva CC’96, innovation didn’t begin in a boardroom. It started in a driveway. An environmental sciences major at Rutgers Cook College—now the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences—Silva never imagined he would one day pitch a patented backyard football game on national television. Yet in October, he stepped through the iconic doors of […]
Brian Sheafer CC’02: A Journey of Leadership and Impact from Rutgers to the Y
When Brian Sheafer earned his bachelor’s degree in business economics from Rutgers Cook College in 2002, he set out on a path that combined analytical thinking with a strong commitment to service. That focus has shaped a career dedicated to strengthening communities through the YMCA for more than two decades. The Metropolitan YMCA of the […]
Veterinarian and Animal Science Graduate James F. Dougherty Named to Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni
The Class of 2026 inductees into the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni have excelled in a varied range of fields—obstetrics and gynecology, addiction prevention and treatment, veterinary medicine, football and entrepreneurship, and government and insurance industry leadership—but they all share a uniquely Scarlet bond: A significant, unwavering devotion to supporting the university where they began […]
Giving Back and Building Up: Food Science Alumni Return to Network with Students
On October 21, the Rutgers Food Science Alumni Committee and the Food Science Undergraduate and Graduate student clubs held their annual Alumni & Student Speed Networking and Awards Ceremony. The event took place at the NJ Institute for Food, Nutrition, and Health on the George H. Cook campus. Nearly 50 attendees, including more than a […]
“Brewology: the Science Behind the Suds” Takes Place at Alumni-Owned Brewery
On October 7, 2025, SEBS alumni gathered in the loft at Flounder Brewing Co., a brewery in Hillsborough, NJ, for an event called “Brewology: The Science Behind the Suds.” The brewery, a converted 18th century barn, is owned by Cook College alumnus, Jeremy Lees CC’99, Landscape Architecture. Guests who participated in the event were treated […]
Celebrating Nicki Graf CC’77 and Her 37-Year Career of Cultivating Plants and People at Rutgers
Perhaps as iconic to Cook Campus as Passion Puddle and the Rutgers Farm, the Floriculture Greenhouse with its towering smokestack has long been a joyful place for plant-minded people at Rutgers. One of the oldest buildings on Cook campus, the Floriculture Greenhouse originally served as a research station focusing on cut flower production and preservation […]
