Texas A&M senior honored by Texas Society of American Foresters
Keira Mattson recognized for leadership, academic excellence and commitment to conservation
Keira Mattson ’26, senior in the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, earned the 2026 Outstanding Student Award from the Texas Society of American Foresters, recognizing her leadership, scholarship and service to the forestry profession.
The organization will present the award at its annual meeting in March.
Mattson, who is on the forest resources track, serves as vice president of the Texas A&M student chapter of the Society of American Foresters.
“It means a lot,” Mattson said. “It’s very nice to be recognized for the work I’ve done and how far I’ve come. It’s nice to feel validated within my major.”
Small program, strong community
Originally from Frisco, Mattson chose Texas A&M in part because of its close-knit forestry program and conservation focus.
“I’m really interested in conservation,” she said. “I want to help the earth.”
The forest resources track has 30 students, which Mattson said provided a community learning environment.
“Every class that I’m in, I know someone,” she said. “It’s a really intimate experience. I get to know the people around me, and joining the organizations that I’m in has helped me be part of that community.”
Mattson credits retired associate professor Carol Loopstra, Ph.D., as a major influence during her time in the department.
“She loved trees. She cared so much,” Mattson said. “She also cared so much about her students. She was the kind of professor who you could sit down with in her office and just talk forever. Her classes really inspired me.”
Looking ahead
After graduation, Mattson plans to move to North Carolina, where she hopes to work in forest inventory and analysis, commonly known as FIA. The work involves measuring trees and collecting data that feed into a national database tracking the condition of America’s forests.
She hopes to spend several years working in the field before pursuing graduate school. “I really want to make a difference,” Mattson said. “It’s nice to be recognized, but more than anything, I just want to keep doing work that matters.”
