Carolyn Kurle, an assistant professor at UC San Diego, has been named a 2012-2013 Hellman Faculty Fellow. She and 21 other junior faculty members at UCSD won the award this year to support them in their research and scholarly work toward tenured positions.

Kurle, a 1990 Auburn High School graduate, works in the Section of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution at UCSD.

The Hellman Fellowship Program was established at UC San Diego in 1995 with a gift of $2.5 million from Chris and Warren Hellman. Last year, the Hellman Fellows Fund made an additional grant of $2.4 million, providing continued support for the program. Its purpose is to provide financial support and encouragement to young faculty who show capacity for great distinction in their research and creative activities.

A faculty member in the Division since 2010, Kurle received her doctorate from UC Santa Cruz in 2008 and her bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington in 1994. Her research is focused on how human perturbations such as habitat alteration, invasive species and biodiversity loss impact communities.

She also strives to incorporate concrete conservation actions into her research projects so that she can both study and contribute to restoring ecosystems.