Rebekah Hare

Rebekah Hare is a Laboratory Research and Teaching Technician (LRTT) with BLaST. She completed her PhD in Biology at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF) in 2014, focused on Francisella pathogenicity. Rebekah is also adjunct faculty at Iḷisaġvik College in Barrow, AK and Co-I on the BLaST Pilot Project: Arctic Microbes. She lives her personal motto “work hard, play hard” in the lab and classroom, as well as, in roller derby bouts and long trail rides on her horse.

Research: Rebekah is the lab manager for Dr. Karsten Hueffer’s Infectious Disease Lab UAF. She continues her work on Francisella tularensis, the pathogen behind tuleramia; also known as rabbit or beaver fever, after its targeted hosts. Rebekah has been investigating the potential of mosquitoes as vectors for the disease. She is also involved in developing rabies and host cell models including an exciting new project with Dr. Nina Hansen involving novel bacterial strains infecting and often killing goose eggs. Rebekah’s Arctic Microbes project in Barrow involves seasonal and annual analysis of environmental microbiota with an eye towards climate change and long-term microbial monitoring.

Teaching: At Iḷisaġvik, Rebekah has taught a wide variety of courses: Gen Chem (CHEM 103), Intro to Earth Sci (GEOS 100), and Methods in Molecular Bio (BIO 215). She has been a coordinator and instructor for high school summer camps in the North Slope since 2011. Recently, she was awarded the 2016 Denis Demmert Award for her work with rural students.

Mentoring: Every year, Rebekah mentors 10 or more students including those from UAF and Iḷisaġvik. She directs independent study courses for several students receiving credit for the class, as well as fosters their lab experience and guides them on their chosen career path.