Science and Splendor—Exploring the Environment at Assumption and Beyond 

Addressing a group of sailors in 1962, President John F. Kennedy famously said, “It is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean.” 

For students drawn to exploring the science and splendor of that connection—and humanity’s broader interrelation to the natural world—Assumption offers several educational and experiential opportunities, from the water to the wetlands.  

Greyhounds can pursue a major or a minor in environmental science and get involved outside the classroom with the University’s student sustainability committee.  

Those with a particular interest in the ocean can take advantage of a partnership with the Marine Studies Consortium, which offers Assumption students the opportunity to take full-credit courses on wetlands, mammals, marine studies, and more both online and at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution alongside students from Wellesley College, Boston University, and beyond.  

Kayke Batista ’26 decided to build his environmental science degree with a focus on the subjects he is most passionate about by integrating the Consortium’s course offerings, including one on water conservation and management. 

“I love to talk about marine life with people,” he says. “I love to explain that these animals—like blobfish and cuttlefish—look the way that they do for a reason, for survival.”   

Batista’s passion for marine biology began in a surprising way—the video game Splatoon. The main characters in the game are cephalopods—squid and octopi—that battle one another.  

“The game began to introduce real life lore, using science to justify the characters’ behavior, and I found it interesting,” he says. “I decided to do my own research, and that’s where it all started with crustaceans and cephalopods.”  

Batista has merged his passion for video games with his campus life as well as his academic life, as an active member of Assumption’s esports team. After graduation, he hopes to continue studying what he loves after taking a gap year to work and travel.  

“My hope is that in the future, when I pursue graduate school, I will continue with the marine science route,” Batista says. “I want to go into research and find my true passion in the field.”  

Assumption students looking to continue their education in environmental science can apply for a three-two program with Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment, earning them both a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and a Master of Environmental Science Management or a Master of Forest Management after three years at Assumption and two years at Duke.  

In addition, Assumption is one of only 35 institutions that participate in Duke’s Marine Sciences Education Consortium, offering students the opportunity to study marine science and marine ecology for credit.  

William Roberts ’24, who majored in environmental science, is one of those students who continued his studies at Duke for a semester after graduating from Assumption.  

“My mom’s side of the family all went to Duke, and she grew up right outside of Durham,” he says. “My grandpa was a fisherman, and he pointed out the marine lab to me when I was little. Ever since then, I have always thought about studying there.” 

Roberts was drawn to Assumption for his undergraduate studies by hockey, liberal arts, the size of the school, and opportunity to work closely with professors. While on Salisbury Street, he researched environmental conditions in certain Vermont wetlands alongside Professor Karolina Fucikova, who now teaches at Cornell University.

Fucikova also had a major impact on the trajectory of Roberts’ future academic career.  

“Professor Fucikova told me about the opportunity to go to Duke for just a semester as an undergrad or as a post-baccalaureate, and I was fortunate enough to go,” he says.  

During the semester, he researched how coral populations responded to different tire wear particle treatments from roadway runoff with Duke’s Norman L. Christensen Distinguished Professor of Environmental Science Daniel Rittschof. 

Now, Roberts is pursuing a master’s degree in environmental and sustainability studies at the College of Charleston in South Carolina.  

“It sounds like everything was mapped out, but it wasn’t at all,” he says. “I went to Duke because I thought maybe marine science was going to interest me most—and then I did the program, and I decided I wanted to go into more forestry and terrestrial ecology.  

“Professor Rittschof introduced me to this program [at Charleston] which would provide a way for me to do a research project and discern what I want to do,” Roberts says.  

He is currently working on his thesis project for the program with the College of Charleston’s Associate Professor of Biology Dan McGlinn. The research focuses on rare, endangered wetland plant species (Canby’s dropwort) that require unique habitat conditions, and how land management strategies affect the species and how different strategies could be used to sustain these plant populations.   

Looking towards the future, Roberts hopes to come back to New England, where his family still lives, and hopes to work in the field of wildlife biology. He’ll take Assumption wherever he goes, with his undergraduate studies providing a solid foundation for the rest of his academic career.  

“When people hear that I balanced school, and an NCAA sport, and was a scientist, it says something—I can handle adversity, and problem solve,” he says. “I think the biggest thing for me about Assumption was how it made me think critically about life. 

“Assumption taught me a philosophy of how to go about life—it’s not just you; it’s about the big picture. It helped me understand, personally and spiritually, that the connections you make with people help you live a better and more meaningful life,” he says.  

Looking back at what Assumption taught him, what the sea taught him, it’s hard not to hear President Kennedy’s words echo through Roberts six decades later: “I really don’t know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it is because in addition to the fact that the sea changes and the light changes, and ships change, it is because we all came from the sea. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch it we are going back from whence we came.”