Contact Information
Urbana, IL 61801
4070/4071 Pod D
Office Hours
Research Areas
Biography
Zoe is an M.A. student in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Zoe's research interests lie at the intersection of extreme weather events (flash flooding and atmospheric rivers) and risk communication, warning dissemination, and prompting protective action. Zoe is a graduate teaching assistant within the Department of Communication for CMN 101: Public Speaking and a graduate research assistant in the Department of Climate, Meteorology, and Atmospheric Sciences. As a research assistant, Zoe is helping lead the first nationwide, bilingual (English/Spanish) survey examining current levels of public understanding of atmospheric rivers and how people interpret and respond to the atmospheric river scale’s different categories of risk and impact.
Zoe grew up in Topeka, Kansas, and holds a B.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. In her free time, she enjoys running, hiking, reading science fiction, and doing paper crafts.
Research Interests
Risk and Crisis Communication, Science Communication, and Extreme Weather
Education
- B.S., Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Distinction in Research
- Minors: Earth, Society, and the Environment and Political Science
Awards and Honors
- Top Student Paper, Applied Communication Division, 111th National Communication Association Annual Convention (2025)
- Honorable Mention, National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (2025)
- Outstanding Undergraduate Research Paper Award, Department of Climate, Meteorology, and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2025)
- Outstanding Undergraduate Technical Poster, Earth, Society, and the Environment Research Review, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2025)
- Outstanding Undergraduate Science Communication, Earth, Society, and the Environment Research Review, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2025)
Courses Taught
Instructor of Record
CMN 101: Public Speaking
Recent Publications
Caryl, Z. N., Trujillo-Falcón, J. E., & Droegemeier, K. K. (Revise & Resubmit). Navigating rising waters: Empowering Shunganunga Creek floodplain communities through protection motivation theory. Weather, Climate, and Society.