The 2025 ESA Eastern Branch officer elections, conducted via electronic ballot, will open January 6, 2025, and close February 5, 2025, at 10:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time.
For additional information on voting, see ESA voting instructions. Questions? Contact elections@entsoc.org.
See the candidates below:
President-Elect
Simon Zebelo
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Bio: Dr. Simon Zebelo is an entomology and plant biology professor at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He received his Ph.D. in plant environmental bio-sensory (chemical ecology) from the University of Turin, Italy 2011. During his educational and research trajectory, he has developed a deep interest in the fundamental and applied aspects of plant-insect interactions and integrated pest management (IPM). He has published over 26 research articles, four book chapters, and IPM manuals and presented in several professional meetings, seminars, and outreach programs. He co-wrote several successful grant proposals submitted to local and federal agencies. He has been an ESA member since 2013.
Past ESA activity or other volunteer service: Dr. Simon Zebelo served as program chair and co-chair of ESA Eastern Branch Meetings for four years from 2020 to 2023. He has served as moderator and judge and participated in volunteer activities during the ESA Annual Meeting and Branch Meetings. Moreover, he served as vice president of the International Association of Black Entomologists from 2015 to 2020. He served as a reviewer of several journal articles and a panelist with USDA-NIFA. Currently, he is serving as the IR-4 project northeast region director and on the advisory board of the Northeast IPM Center.
Candidate statement: ESA has been a pillar of my educational and career development. It is an excellent opportunity for me to serve Society. I have been an ESA member since 2013 and served in different volunteer and leadership roles at the branch and national level. If elected to this position, I would use my experiences to move Society forward to the next level by maintaining the highest quality standards as the global leader of entomological sciences. I will strive to increase the participation of minority-serving institutions such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and others by creating a platform for collaboration through meetings or enhancing policy through advocacy.
Secretary
Anna Wallingford
USDA ARS
Bio: Dr. Wallingford is a research entomologist at USDA's Agricultural Research Service in Beltsville, Maryland. She earned her Ph.D. at Virginia Tech's Department of Entomology and has since served agricultural communities in California, New York, and New Hampshire through her work in integrated pest management research and extension.
Past ESA activity or other volunteer service: Dr. Wallingford has been an ESA member since 2005, mostly in the Eastern Branch. She has been highly involved in organizing and running Branch Meetings, serving as Branch secretary, program co-chair, Entomology Games gamesmaster, and frequent judge for student competitions.
Candidate statement: The Eastern Branch fills an important need in our professional development, as smaller, regional meetings allow for more time and more robust networking between entomologists in our branch. I feel strongly that this is worth supporting.
Early Career Professional Representative to the Executive Committee
Heather Kopsco
Columbia University
Bio: Heather's favorite career path quip references a song from the show Avenue Q: "What do you do with a B.A. in English?" In her case, it was become a disease ecologist. She holds a B.A. in English from Rutgers University, then changed course to study ecology (B.S., M.S.) at Montclair State University, and received her Ph.D. in ecology from the University of Rhode Island in 2020. Heather briefly left the best coast to complete a post-doc at the University of Illinois College of VetMed but then returned home to New Jersey in 2023 to work as an associate research scientist in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology at Columbia University where she studies the eco-epidemiology of tickborne disease. Heather and her partner spend non-work time wrangling 7- and 2-year-old humans, two elderly pitbull-type dogs, and a burgeoning collection of houseplants.
Past ESA activity or other volunteer service: Heather has been an ESA and MUVE Section member since 2017, when she began researching ticks and public health messaging in her Ph.D. program. She credits ESA for being an inclusive and encouraging environment where she honed public speaking skills and saw the massive benefit of connection and support of this Society. She regularly serves as a judge for student competitions and organized symposia at the Annual Meeting in 2022 and 2024 to highlight the importance of diverse research methodologies and One Health. She joined the North Central Branch during her postdoc and continued participating in meetings there but is thrilled to be back in the Eastern Branch, her first ESA home. Heather frequently serves as a reviewer for ESA journals, is a mentor in the MUVE Mentoring Network, and participates in the Vector-Borne Disease Network through her position in NEVBD-TEC.
Candidate statement: I could not be more honored to be nominated for Early Career Representative to the Executive Committee. At the 2024 Branch Meeting, I participated in an early career symposium and was struck and validated by presentations from and discussions with colleagues about the challenges of this unique period in our careers. Many of us are struggling to balance loans, finding jobs, and starting or supporting families, and we often must move long distances away from support networks. As a first-generation college student and parent of young children, I experienced many of these difficulties and believe that our Society and Branch are uniquely positioned and qualified to provide support. I am passionate about creating meaningful and productive connections among people, and, if elected, I will seek out creative ways to foster rich community and access to participation for those in our Branch.