Rebecca R. Sharitz (1944-2018) was an emeritus professor at the University of Georgia who spent the majority of her career as a senior researcher in the UGA's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory.
[1][2] Her research centered on wetlands and their ecological functions with a focus on river floodplains, swamp forests, and Carolina Bays.
[1][2] Some notable findings in Sharitz's research were the discoveries of links between wetland forest regeneration and flooding due to storm events, dam alterations, and hydrologic discharge from nuclear reactors.
Notable honors and awards are listed below: Posthumously, Sharitz's family developed a fellowship to honor Sharitz and her late husband Carl Byrne Hatfield, who worked at the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site.
[4] The Dr. Rebecca Reyburn Sharitz and Carl Byrne Hatfield Fellowship Fund[14] provides financial support to PhD candidates at the University of Georgia focused on ecology or plant biology.