CSUMB alumna says scholarships critical to her success

By Mark Muckenfuss

Ingrid Martinson recalls being impressed at an early age by the negative effects of human activity on the environment.

Martinson, who graduated from Cal State Monterey Bay with a marine science degree in 2024, often spent the summers of her youth in her mother’s home country of Croatia. 

“I grew up visiting a small coastal community and seeing the impacts of pollution and climate change,” she said. “That had a big impact on me.”

Big enough that she left her hometown of Denver, Colorado, to attend CSUMB, where she engaged in research on kelp conservation. As part of the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center Scholars program, she was able to travel to scientific conferences where she presented her work and built networks with other researchers, both students and professors. 

None of that would have been possible, she said, without the scholarships she received, one of which was the $5,000 Barbara Baldock and Phillip Butler Scholarship.

“I used a lot of it for grad school applications, joining professional societies, and to attend a conference,” she said. “Travel and the cost of attending a conference is a huge financial barrier. Without the scholarship, I wouldn’t have been able to go. It really was a great opportunity to support myself professionally.”

She also appreciated the personal connection she developed with the donors. 

“Being able to meet Barbara and Phil and update them on my progress was really special,” Martinson said. 

She benefited from other scholarships as well. Her mentor, Professor Sherry Palacios, encouraged her to apply for many that Martinson never would have considered. One of those took her around the world in the year after she graduated. 

“It's a travel fellowship to pursue diving and other marine science opportunities,” she said. “I got to experience a lot of conservation programs around the world. It’s like a bunch of mini experiences. I got to go to the Galapagos and work on [Isabella] island’s first coral restoration project.”

That project is overseen by CSUMB Professor Cheryl Logan. 

“She needed somebody to go out in the field with one of her master’s students,” Martinson said. “It was a really cool experience.”

Another scholarship allowed her to do kelp research in Puget Sound. She’s continuing to study kelp as a grad student at UC Santa Cruz, where she is pursuing a doctorate in ecology and evolutionary biology.

“We’re talking a lot about resilience and identifying populations that are going to be able to persist through climate-change-induced marine heat waves,” she said. “And how we can best put our efforts toward preservation or restoration.” 

Eventually, she said, “I am hoping to go into the nonprofit sector and work as a director of research in the restoration space.”

Her experience at CSUMB, she said, prepared her well for her current pursuits.

“The program at CSUMB is super interdisciplinary,” Martinson said of the marine science major. “I feel I got a really wide breadth and a good foundation. The dive program was a huge opportunity within the major to be able to gain those skills. I’m planning to have diving as a part of my grad work.”

She also appreciates having had the opportunity to start research early on through the UROC program. 

“There are so many opportunities for undergrads to get involved in research,” she said. “I really benefitted from that. I was able to find a great community and gain a lot of really important skills.”

Scholarships were critical to that, she added.

“I’m super grateful for all the support I got,” Martinson said. “There were many other scholarships that helped me through, that funded other conferences and allowed me to purchase some of my own scuba gear. It's all been supported by scholarships. I would not be here where I am today without that.”