Andrea Silletti uses her background studying plants to guide undergraduate researchers through CURO
By Gracie Howard
Andrea Silletti, program coordinator for the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities (CURO). Photo by Stephanie Schupska.
Andrea Silletti combines her passion for research with her love of working with undergraduate students. As the program coordinator for the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities, she oversees CURO operations, conducts outreach and workshops, processes applications for various programs and classes, and oversees the CURO Symposium, UGA’s annual undergraduate research showcase.
CURO facilitates faculty-mentored research with UGA undergraduates who are in any year in their bachelor’s degree, including those in their first semester.
Even with all her responsibilities, students are Andrea’s top priority.
“A lot of students, I meet them first when they’re first starting college, their first semester, and maybe they’re not sure what research is or how it’s going to fit into their college experience,” Andrea said. “And then I get to see them all four years. I’ve really seen them just develop as students and as researchers and as individuals, and it’s been really satisfying.”
Just like her students in CURO, Andrea was also an undergraduate researcher, sharing that it “was a really big and important experience in my life.” She completed work in plant ecology before graduating with her bachelor’s degree in environmental studies. Her master’s degree is in general biology, and for her thesis, she conducted research in ecology, examining tallgrass prairie and the plants competing for essential and limited resources like light, nutrients, and water.
Prior to working for CURO, which is housed in the Morehead Honors College, Andrea was a lab manager at the Odum School of Ecology. She was also an ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service and a research associate at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
“Having something of a history of being involved in research does help me to interpret or have an understanding of the research process, how to apply it, and how it works,” Andrea said.
Although her research background is in ecology, Andrea aims to encourage undergraduates of all majors—not just those from STEM fields—to conduct research that interests them.
According to Andrea, the most rewarding part of her job is working with the many bright students at UGA, who are majoring in fields ranging from humanities to social sciences to business.
“I feel lucky to work with the best students on campus, because very few students have to do research for their degree,” Andrea said. “I really am fortunate to work with this population of students, because they’re just putting so much energy into what they’re doing. They give me hope for the next generation.”
Andrea is also back at work on her own studies. She is earning a PhD through UGA’s Louise McBee Institute of Higher Education and plans to conduct dissertation research focused on undergraduate research experiences in higher education.
Outside of UGA, Andrea enjoys sewing, reading, baking, and traveling to state parks around Georgia with her husband and two children, who are undergraduates at UGA.
