The Middlesex Experience Nurtured His Passion for Plant Science

Evan Rees has grown from being a two-time high-school dropout to pursuing a doctorate in plant science at Cornell University. And it all started at Middlesex Community College.

At age 18, Rees dropped out of high school for the second time and earned his GED. Today, the Lexington native is enrolled in a Ph.D. program at Cornell, studying plant breeding and genetics in the School of Integrative Plant Science.

Registration is now open for fall-semester courses at MCC. Classes begin Tuesday, Sep. 4, and new students must register by 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 28. Call 1-800-818-3434 or visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/walkin

As a teen, Rees worked in restaurants and at a local garden center. A dual citizen of the U.S. and the U.K., he headed to London for a few years, and then spent time in San Francisco working in a farm-to-table restaurant. When his father died in 2013, 22-year-old Rees returned to Massachusetts to be closer to his family. His mother, who works at another local community college, guided him toward MCC.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to study, but my plan was to explore my interests in food, agriculture and sustainability, and see where that led,” he said.

After his first semester, Rees entered MCC’s Commonwealth Honors Program (CHP).

“Evan exhibited creativity, diligence and excellence in his academic work,” recalled David Kalivas, CHP Director. “And he was quite energetic as he worked on the college’s Community Garden.”

Kalivas became Rees’ academic advisor, helping him apply for transfer to four-year schools and encouraging him to shoot high. “He helped me polish my personal statements and urged me to apply to Cornell, which I may not have done otherwise,” said Rees.

Rees’ first exposure to life-science research was in an independent-study STEM research course. His focus was soil microbes in the Bedford campus organic garden.

In fact, it was in MCC’s Community Garden where Rees really began to bloom. A work-study position steered him toward the garden, where he planted, weeded and watered for hours. “Working on the garden taught me quite a bit about plants, people and nature, and how they all fit together,” Rees said.

Following his 2015 graduation from MCC with a degree in Liberal Studies, Rees was accepted to Cornell. However, for financial reasons he chose to attend UMass Amherst, completing a bachelor’s degree in Plant and Soil Science in spring 2017.

“Middlesex was something of a proving ground for me,” said Rees. “By navigating MCC, I figured out that I could be successful in academics – and that college was a feasible path to continue on.”

At UMass, he had the opportunity to work in a genomics lab. Feeling comfortable with the laboratory side of science, Rees yearned for more applied-fieldwork. So, he applied to Cornell for graduate school. “Plant breeding is, at least seasonally, a good balance of bench and field, so it seemed like the natural choice,” said Rees.

He is currently working to identify the genetic basis of cold tolerance in wild relatives of maize (corn). The goal is to develop varieties that can thrive in colder climates and for extended seasons, possibly even over winter. Rees expects to complete his doctorate in 2022 or 2023, then find work that has a global impact and also allows him to do some teaching.

As he has nurtured and grown his skills and experiences, Rees has not forgotten his roots. “The community at MCC was incredible. The faculty and staff were warm and accessible, willing to lend an ear and make connections where it made sense,” he said. “Those connections led to opportunities and experiences that defined my time there.

“The other part of the Middlesex equation was the students,” continued Rees. “The variety of backgrounds and perspectives they represented led to some engaging discussions and lasting friendships.”

Middlesex Community College is your pathway to success. As one of the largest, most comprehensive community colleges in the state, we educate, engage and empower a diverse community of learners. MCC offers more than 70 degree and certificate programs, plus hundreds of noncredit courses, on our campuses in Bedford and Lowell, as well as online. Middlesex Community College: Student success starts here!