Aggie Student Veterans Innovate & Inspire Through Research
By Marketing and Communications | 04-24-2025
Findings by U.S. Army veteran and Texas A&M University graduate student Brian Metz ’17 ’28 could boost fish species diversity in lakes, a crucial factor in a healthy lake ecosystem. Metz’ research earned him a $1,000 scholarship today and first-place honors in the 2025 Veteran Research Showcase.
The third-annual event took place earlier this month featuring student research at Texas A&M’s Evans Library. It highlights the impactful efforts of Aggie student veterans who, after serving in posts throughout the world, are pursuing degrees at Texas A&M.
The showcase is co-hosted by the Texas A&M University Libraries and the Don & Ellie Knauss Veteran Resource & Support Center.
The students who competed in the showcase had a simple task — to change the world. They diligently answered questions about how to do just that through microbiology, product testing and water quality tests.
Metz is a Master of Natural Resources student and a Texas Parks and Wildlife Fisheries Management employee at the Toledo Bend Reservoir Wildlife Management Area.
“After high school, I joined the Army as an infantryman and deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn,” he said. “Four years in the Army, I decided I needed to take a different path in my life.”
Metz is part of a team researching which artificial fish attractors — man-made fish habitats — that support fish diversity and quantities in reservoir lakes.
As a distance education student, he noted that returning to campus for the showcase was invigorating.
“Just being on campus gives me energy,” Metz said. “Being able to come here to present for a scholarship opportunity is giving me that energy to continue.”
On the micro-end of the biology spectrum, Haley Bennett ’26, U.S. Air Force veteran and microbiology Ph.D candidate at Texas A&M, focused her research on future therapeutics to treat antibacterial-resistant infections.
“I definitely wanted to get involved because any opportunity to talk about your science is good practice,” Bennett said. “It’s really good to learn to explain things to a wider audience.”
Rounding out the showcase was a presentation that focused on Texas A&M’s drinking water.
James Le, U.S. Air Force veteran and graduate student in School of Public Health, and his cross-disciplinary team surveyed students’ thoughts regarding campus drinking water. They used this data to determine 20 locations for testing the water.
“In the future with this, we are probably going to create an open forum,” said Le.
Texas A&M University Libraries
Follow us on Instagram
Written by: Ivy Mestrovic | Media Contact: Matthew Kennedy, matthew.kennedy@tamu.edu
About Texas A&M University Libraries
Comprising six unique libraries, the Texas A&M University Libraries are a hub of resources, spaces and professionals supporting the success of research, learning and teaching. The Libraries’ advance student success and partner in innovative research, while providing a physical and digital home to all students, staff, faculty and researchers. To learn more visit library.tamu.edu.