IN OUR COMMUNITY : ALUMNI
Making New Discoveries
Courtland Lyle ’ 13 examines an ancient shark tooth fossil .
Within the next few months , Robert “ Courtland ” Lyle ’ 13 may be able to say he ’ s discovered an entirely new fossil species . A senior at the University of Mary Washington double majoring in geology and biology , Mr . Lyle recently interned at the Virginia Museum of Natural History ’ s vertebrate paleontology department , which led to the groundbreaking discovery .
His first internship project involved cleaning and cataloguing some fossil shark teeth from the museum ’ s collection ( pictured ). His second project centered on cleaning and identifying the bones of a 14 million-year-old whale skeleton discovered in Carmel Church , Va . After finishing his identifications , Mr . Lyle said he believes it to be a new species of whale .
He has continued to work on the whale project with his museum mentor Dr . Alex Hastings , and he visited the Smithsonian Institution to further study where the whale may fall on the evolutionary tree .
He presented his preliminary findings at the Virginia Academy of Science ’ s fall undergraduate research meeting this past October , and he plans to complete the project in time for the Geologic Society of America ’ s southeastern section meeting this March .
“ It has been my dream since I was little to become a paleontologist ,” he said . “ This internship gave me invaluable experience working in a field that I wish to pursue as a career .”
Mr . Lyle is currently in the process of applying to graduate schools with the plan of conducting his own paleontology research and ultimately obtaining his Ph . D .
International Inspirations
Bashir Ahmadi may have only spent a year at Steward , but it left a lasting impact .
Mr . Ahmadi came to Steward in 2005 as an exchange student from Afghanistan . Former board member Ariel Skelley served as his host mother during his stay . He said he excelled particularly well in mathematics classes , which prompted his desire to pursue engineering as a career . But Mr . Ahmadi adds that it was more than just classes that made his experience great .
“ It was the healthy social environment that allowed me to learn and grow ,” he said . “ I felt encouraged by the teachers and my host family , and it really opened my mind up to bigger opportunities .”
After his year at Steward , he returned to Afghanistan and completed high school there , and then took time off from school to work for a German engineering company . But when he received a scholarship from the U . S . State Department in 2010 , he left to pursue his undergraduate studies at Colorado State University ( CSU ), from which he graduated with a degree in civil engineering in 2014 .
After graduating , Mr . Ahmadi immediately pursued a master ’ s degree in civil engineering at CSU . He graduated this past December with a focus in structural engineering . Since his thesis focused on the properties of steel bridges , he said he hopes to work at a consulting company doing bridge design . Eventually , he hopes to own his own engineering consulting company . In the meantime , he is interested in mentoring Steward students with an interest in his field .
“ Steward really paved the way to my dreams , and I would love to give back ,” he said . “ I now have two degrees , and I ’ m so blessed that the school helped me get to where I am .”
26 | The Colonnade