PELLSTON, Mich. — For friends and family at home and in Ann Arbor, the fact that Nickolas Holcomb is exploring bogs and building a tower to learn about ecology and climate science at the University of Michigan Biological Station is a miracle.

“This is my first time going to school after my injury,” Holcomb said.

Five months ago the senior at the University of Michigan was in a skateboarding accident at a park near his childhood home in Murray, Kentucky, and was flown by air ambulance to a hospital.

The 21-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury in late December during winter break that resulted in a 5-millimeter shift in his brain.

He remained in the hospital for a month — through Jan. 28 — but his recovery spanned five months.

Holcomb had to pause his academic journey at the University of Michigan where he is double majoring in ecology and evolutionary biology and Program in the Environment (PitE).

Nickolas Holcomb unpacked his belongings from the trunk of a car during spring term move-in day at UMBS Tuesday, May 20.

Now Holcomb is not only dipping his toes back into the college experience, he is jumping back in with intensity and adventure through the University of Michigan Biological Station’s spring term courses that immerse students in nature and discovery at the historic, remote campus nestled along Douglas Lake in northern Michigan.

“I was worried how long I could pay attention in a classroom setting because I did have a brain injury,” Holcomb said. “Focusing and going to class can be a challenge to keep energy up, but it’s very worthwhile. Classroom settings can get pretty dull pretty quickly, so I like the fact that everyday there's something different in my classes here.”

Holcomb is taking two courses during his four-week stay at the more than 10,000-acre research and teaching campus in Pellston: “General Ecology Lab” and “Observation and Modeling of Climate Change Biology.”

“We are so very glad to have Nick as part of our UMBS community this summer,” said Dr. Aimée Classen, director of UMBS and a professor in the U-M Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Nickolas Holcomb stood on a ladder outside Stockard Lakeside Lab to work with his class to build a flux tower on May 27.

Both of Holcomb’s classes incorporate practical, hands-on elements of scientific learning like building complex equipment such as a flux tower and exploring different ecosystems of northern Michigan.

During the first week of classes, Holcomb stood on a ladder outside Stockard Lakeside Lab to work with his “Observation and Modeling of Climate Change Biology” class to build a flux tower that holds different sensors and computers to measure atmospheric data and environmental conditions.

“A lot of our in-the-class time is spent learning about different aspects of climate change and the history of it as well as learning how to code certain things in different languages — whether that’s in R, JuMP or MATLAB — to analyze the data we’re looking at,” Holcomb said. “And what we just built was a machine that helps collect data to analyze and do stuff with in the class.”

"General Ecology Lab," taught by Dr. Rebecca MacKay, has traversed many different parts of Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas, including Tahquamenon Falls State Park, the Maple River at UMBS, and what’s affectionately known as “Narnia” along Lake Huron.

Travel is a key element of MacKay’s course.

"Each of those areas has a different ecology,” MacKay said. “Instead of just seeing pictures at home, in my class you get to experience that ecology.

Nickolas Holcomb, right, got harnessed in for tower safety training with Dr. John Lenters, left, senior research specialist at UMBS, on June 10 in Stockard Lakeside Lab.

As Holcomb takes advantage of all of the Biological Station’s opportunities for growth in the living laboratory of the natural world, Holcomb also finds it important to pace himself.

“It's my first time returning to the normal world for me — like normal school and interaction,” Holcomb said. “It can definitely be overstimulating. I get tired pretty easily now. So I feel you need to have built-in time to have your own time where you're either on the lake or whatever is in your element. Otherwise, it's very easy to get carried away.”

While Holcomb is readjusting to classes with the support of family, UMBS staff, faculty and fellow students, he's busy thinking about his future as well. 

In the short term it means returning to Ann Arbor in the fall to finish his degree. Long-term, anything is possible.

"I'm not really sure what I want to do,” Holcomb said. “I'm still trying to figure it out. I really enjoy research and being outside, but I also really enjoy journalism and stories of other people. Wherever I end up, I think I'm pretty fortunate to be here now.”

RELATED: UMBS Students Build Flux Tower to Measure Climate Change Biology

The U-M Biological Station — the largest of U-M's campuses — is one of the nation's largest and longest continuously operating field research stations.

Founded in 1909, the Biological Station supports long-term research and education. It is where students and scientists from across the globe live and work as a community to learn from the place.

The University of Michigan Biological Station serves as a gathering place to learn from the natural world, advance research and education, and inspire action. We leverage over a century of research and transformative experiences to drive discoveries and solutions to benefit Michigan and beyond.

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