Stefanie Farrington

Stefanie is passionate about aquatic conservation and endangered species protection, with an emphasis on freshwater mussels. A major focus of her career has been creating tangible outcomes to guide restoration and management decision-making, while also providing transparency to the public and improving efficiency without sacrificing data quality. She received her M.S. and B.A. from Clark University, where she studied the population genetics of freshwater pearl mussels in central and western Massachusetts. Stefanie has held several roles with non-profit, municipal, state, and federal agencies focused on the conservation of rare wildlife and wetlands protection in Massachusetts and the northeast United States. She received her PhD from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2026, where she was part of the Massachusetts Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and a Pathways Trainee with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. At UMass, Stefanie worked on several applied research projects developed in partnership with key stakeholders including conservation organizations, government agencies, natural resource professionals, and policymakers. These projects included benthic mesohabitat mapping and characterization for species distribution modelling in large rivers, field- and laboratory-based ecological mussel-host fish assessments, and a range-wide synthesis of conservation and management needs for the yellow lampmussel. When not in the lab or the river, Stefanie enjoys playing board games, doing all kinds of crafts, and spending time outdoors.