Mackenzie Zippay

Mackenzie Zippay is an Associate Professor and Biology Graduate Program Coordinator at Sonoma State University, located in the Department of Biology within the College of Science, Technology, and Business. She holds a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of California, Santa Barbara (2009), followed by postdoctoral research at the University of South Carolina/Northeastern University and the Medical University of South Carolina.

Her research focuses on environmental physiology and eco-physiology of marine invertebrates, particularly intertidal mussels, exploring how organisms adapt to environmental variability and climate change. She integrates molecular, cellular, and biophysical approaches to model energy budgets and predict survival under changing conditions. Key themes include climate change impacts, physiological stress responses, and biophysical modeling.

Dr. Zippay teaches courses such as BIOL 115 (Introduction to Biology), BIOL 130 (Intro to Genetics and Cell Biology), and advanced courses on environmental and animal physiology. Her lab actively engages graduate students, including Aiyana Singh, who recently passed her qualifying exam and received scholarships. The Zippay Lab is currently recruiting new graduate students for Fall 2025.

Publications highlight interdisciplinary work on mussel physiology, thermal tolerance, and climate change impacts, with a focus on integrating field observations with laboratory analyses. Her research underscores the importance of understanding organismal resilience in dynamic coastal ecosystems.