My research is centered around understanding, through the lens of ecophysiology, how the environmental impacts of climate change are affecting our local forests. Through my research, I seek to contribute meaningfully to our understanding of tree physiology, and to inform sustainable forest management practices that preserve vital ecosystem services.
Duke University August 2020 – Present
Environment PhD Candidate
Primary Advisor: Dr. Ram Oren
Co-Advisor: Dr. JC Domec
Certificate in College Teaching
Yale University September 2014 – May 2018
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, BS
Degree Conferred: May 21, 2018
Functional Ecology of Plants Sole Teaching Assistant, Duke University, ENV 505
Fall 2025; 18 upperclass UG and G students
Intro to Environmental Science Lab/Lecture Adjunct Instructor, Elon University, ENS 1710D
Fall 2024; 24 UG students
Forest Ecosystems Sole Teaching Assistant, Duke University, ENV 503
Spring 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026; 13-28 upperclass UG and G students
Intro to Environmental Sciences and Policy Lead Teaching Assistant, Duke University, ENV 102
Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Fall 2023; 70-85 UG students
Applied Data Analysis for the Environmental Sciences Teaching Assistant, Duke University, ENV 710
Fall 2021; 75 G students
Intro to Environmental Sciences and Policy Teaching Assistant, Duke University, ENV 102
Fall 2020, Spring 2021; 70-85 UG students
The Five Pines: Intra- and interannual drivers and limiters of transpiration in a developing forest stand; Wake Forest University Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Seminar Series, October 2025 ***
Five Pines: The Ecophysiology of a Developing Forest; Rutgers University Earth and Environmental Sciences Seminar Series, April 2025 ***
Crown Architecture and Growth Physiology of Five Southern Pine Species; (Boroski, C.A., Maier, C.A., Wang, Y., Wang, N., Zhang, H., Palmroth, S., Domec, J.C., & Oren, R.)
· September 2025, Forest Productivity Cooperative Annual Meeting ***
· May 2025, HQPlantations Five Pines Study Tour ***
· March 2023, Nicholas School Board of Visitors Duke Forest Tour ***
· February 2023, U.S. Forest Service Five Pines Study Tour ***
· November 2022, Friends of Duke Forest Research Tour ***
Thermal Dissipation Probe Construction Workshops Workshop Leader
May 2025, University of Notre Dame
October 2024, Duke University
Nicholas School of the Environment Teaching Assistant Orientation Training Co-Leader
Fall 2023, 2024, and 2025, Duke University
“Adaptive variation, species diversification, and biogeography”; Guest Lecturer
Fall 2025, Duke University, Functional Ecology of Plants
The Five Pines: The Story so Far; Wake Forest University, Lowman Lab, April 2024 ***
Transpiration responses of five southern pine species to variation in atmospheric and soil moisture
conditions unify when standardized by leaf area.; Boroski, C. A., Maier, C. A., Wang, Y., Domec, J. C., Palmroth, S., & Oren, R. (2024, June 24-27). NAFEW 2024, Asheville, NC
Compensations among hydraulic traits maintain similar transpiration rates among five Southern pine species despite decreasing rates with increasing tree height. Boroski, C., Domec, J. C., Maier, C. A., Palmroth, S., Wang, Y., & Oren, R. (2023, December). American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2023
Controlling for Canopy Leaf Area Homogenizes Transpiration Responses of Five Southern Pine Species to Variation in Atmospheric and Soil Moisture Conditions; Boroski, C.A., Maier, C. A., Wang, Y., Domec, J. C., Palmroth, S., & Oren, R. (2022, December). American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2022
Boroski, C.A., Domec, J. C., Maier, C. A., Palmroth, S., Wang, Y., & Oren, R. Leaf transpiration decreases similarly among five pine species as height increases over stand development, Tree Physiology, 2025; tpaf093, https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpaf093
Boroski, C.A., Maier, C. A., Domec, J. C., Palmroth, S., Wang, Y., & Oren, R. Increased transpiration with leaf area in accruing stands of five pine species is greatly attenuated by concurrent increases of height. Accepted for publication at Agricultural and Forest Meteorology.
Zhang, H., Domec, J. C., Maier, C. A., Boroski, C. A., Wang, N., Palmroth, S., & Oren, R. (2025). Similar response of canopy conductance to increasing vapor pressure deficit and decreasing soil conductivity with drought among five morphologically contrasting but co-occurring pine species. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 366, 110479.
Lab Manager Oren Lab, Duke University
August 2022 – Present
Re-Imagining Doctoral Education (RiDE) Fellow Duke University
June 2023 – August 2023 “Advancing Teaching Assistantship Training, Placement, and Support”
This was a solo project where I investigated what training is needed by students and desired by faculty to best perform their roles as teaching assistants, and generated a plan for training incoming and continuing students.
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Nicolette Cagle
June 2022 – August 2022 “Diversity in the Geosciences: A New Perspective and Action Plan”
This was a duo project where we spoke to students, faculty, and staff about what the Nicholas School and Duke more broadly could do to support the growth and maintenance of diversity in their population, and wrote a comprehensive guide for how to approach the issue holistically.
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Emily Klein
June 2021 – August 2021 “PhD Mentoring Guidelines”; "Guide for Developing Mentoring Guidelines”
This was a solo project where I drew from literature on best practices for mentoring to write sample mentoring guidelines for Nicholas School programs and a guide for developing one’s own mentoring guidelines in accordance with those practices.
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Justin Wright; Staff Supervisor: Danielle Wiggins, MEd
Co-President Society of Duke Fellows
August 2022 – August 2024; Member from August 2020 - Present
President Nicholas School PhD Advocacy Council
July 2022 – May 2024; Member from July 2021 – May 2024
President Nicholas School Black and Latine Club
July 2022 – May 2024
Co-President Nicholas School Black and Latine Club
July 2021 – June 2022
Duke University Responsible Conduct of Research Training Seminars
Academic Integrity – Fall 2020
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – Fall 2020
Best Practices in the Responsible Conduct of Research – Fall 2021
Cultural Competency and Humility – Spring 2023
Academic Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research – Summer 2025
Certificate in College Teaching Program
Coursework:
GS 750: Fundamentals of College Teaching
GS 755: College Teaching and Course Design
Teaching Triangles Teaching Observation – Fall 2021
Duke University Preparing Future Faculty Program
Mentor: Dr. Kelsey Bitting, Elon University
Duke Learning Innovation Workshops
Neurodiversity and Your Classroom – Fall 2022
Additional Certificates
· Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking
How to Understand Arguments
How to Reason Deductively
Duke University
Preparing Future Faculty Fellowship, 2023-2024 Academic Year
James B. Duke Fellowship, ’20 - ’24
Re-Imagining Doctoral Education (RiDE) Fellowship (Full Summer Stipend)
Summer 2021
Summer 2022
Summer 2023
Society of Duke Fellows, 2020 – Present
Nicholas School PhD Advocacy Council, 2021 – 2024
American Geophysical Union, 2020 – Present
European Geosciences Union, 2021 – 2024