Laboratory Technologist

Position Summary

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Michigan State University (MSU) invites applications for a Laboratory Technologist to support ongoing biological community restoration programs in the Great Lakes basin.

This position brings together complementary expertise across the physical and biological sciences, including aquatic ecology, environmental chemistry and engineering, microbial and molecular ecology, and environmental genomics. The research focuses on understanding environmental stressors—such as nuisance benthic algae and invasive species—and their impacts on Great Lakes ecosystems.

Although administratively housed within CEE at Michigan State University, this position is physically located at the U.S. Geological Survey Great Lakes Science Center (USGS-GLSC) in Indiana. The successful candidate will conduct field and laboratory research in close collaboration with MSU and USGS scientists.

The overarching goal of the program is to advance native species restoration efforts (including fish and freshwater mussels) while improving management strategies for nuisance benthic algae, particularly

Cladophora spp.

Specific objectives of the position include:

• Characterizing the drivers and ecological consequences of nuisance benthic algae arising from complex interactions among algae, sunlight, water clarity, and invasive dreissenid mussels (quagga and zebra mussels).
• Improving assessments of native and nonnative fish communities through the application of emerging DNA-based technologies.
• Developing and optimizing methods for culturing native freshwater mussels to support reintroduction programs, including efforts led by the National Park Service (Indiana Dunes National Park).
• Elucidating the role of microbial communities in ecological processes and ecosystem services, particularly in nearshore environments affected by nuisance benthic algae (e.g., nutrient cycling).

These efforts involve close collaboration with scientists from the USGS-GLSC, the National Park Service, and partner universities.

This position supports field data collection, data analysis, instrument deployment and maintenance, and laboratory analysis of a wide range of environmental samples. The successful candidate will be based at the USGS Great Lakes Science Center’s Lake Michigan Ecological Research Station and will work closely with MSU and USGS scientists. Primary responsibilities include:

• Field sampling and research support
  Travel with a field crew to collect environmental samples (e.g., algae, water, sediments, and dreissenid mussels) from pre-established transects across all four Great Lakes—Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario—and associated waterways. Sampling is conducted by SCUBA-certified team members, including the successful candidate, primarily between May and September, with approximately 3–4 field visits per lake during this period.
• Environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis
  Apply eDNA and other DNA-based technologies to identify potential fish spawning tributaries for priority species, supporting ongoing Great Lakes fishery restoration programs.
• Native species restoration support
  Assist with group-directed projects related to native species restoration and reintroduction, including freshwater unionid mussels. This work is conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service and involves laboratory propagation of mussel larvae to produce juvenile mussels for further rearing by NPS prior to reintroduction into restored stream habitats.
• Scientific instrument deployment and data retrieval
  Deploy scientific instruments (e.g., Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers [ADCPs]) and retrieve and manage data from field-based instrumentation.

Knowledge equivalent to that which normally would be acquired by completing a four-year college degree program in a related science field; one to three years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive work experience in basic laboratory techniques; experience in working in Biosafety Level 2 laboratories; experience in molecular ecology and environmental DNA (eDNA) in…