Cassondra L. Williams

Biography

Cassondra L. Williams, Ph.D., is an Associate Project Scientist in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of California, Irvine, a Research Scientist at the National Marine Mammal Foundation in San Diego, and a Research Associate in the Department of Biology at the University of San Diego. A scholar in the field of comparative physiology, Williams has spent over two decades studying oxygen transport and diving physiology in marine mammals, birds, and turtles. Her research focuses on understanding how elite diving animals manage oxygen stores during breath-hold dives and how they respond to environmental challenges and disturbances. Williams received a Ph.D. in Marine Biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego in 2011.

Williams has been awarded multiple research grants from the National Science Foundation, including as principal investigator on collaborative projects totaling over $2.5 million to develop continuous metabolite sensors and investigate oxygen transport mechanisms in diving mammals. She developed a near-infrared spectrophotometer to continuously measure muscle oxygen saturation in freely diving penguins, advancing the field of biologging techniques for studying organismal function in natural environments. Her work on muscle oxygen depletion patterns in diving emperor penguins received the 2010 Outstanding Paper Prize from the Journal of Experimental Biology and the 2011 Edward A. Frieman Prize for Excellence in Graduate Student Research from Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Williams serves as Associate Editor for Animal Biotelemetry and as IACUC Chair at the National Marine Mammal Foundation. She has mentored numerous graduate and undergraduate students in comparative physiology research and has been active in science education outreach, serving as Program Chair and Steering Committee Member for the Expanding Your Horizons STEM conference for female students since 2010. Williams also holds a J.D. from the University of Southern California, having practiced law before transitioning to marine biology research.

Education

• Ph.D. in Marine Biology, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UCSD, 2011
• M.S. in Biology, Purdue University, 2004
• J.D., University of Southern California, 1994
• B.S. in Business Administration, University of Southern California, 1990
• B.A. in International Relations, University of Southern California, 1990

Distinctions

• NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship, Multidisciplinary Exercise Sciences Training Program, 2011-2013
• NIH Doctoral Fellowship, Training Program in Marine Biotechnology, 2006-2007
• Scholander Award finalist, American Physiological Society, 2012
• Caroline tum Suden Professional Opportunity Award, American Physiological Society, 2016
• Research Recognition Award, American Physiological Society, 2012
• Outstanding Paper Prize, Journal of Experimental Biology, 2010
• Edward A. Frieman Prize for Excellence in Graduate Student Research, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 2011
• U.C. Regents Fellowship, 2005-2006