Hollis B. Akins

Welcome! I am a fourth-year Ph.D. student at the University of Texas at Austin working with Prof. Caitlin Casey on high-redshift galaxy evolution. In particular, I study massive galaxies and AGN in the epoch of reionization, a period of major phase change in the first billion years of the universe. I focus in particular on rare, bright objects discovered with major telescopes including JWST and ALMA, and I’m a member of the COSMOS-Web and CEERS collaborations.

I completed my Bachelors in Physics at Grinnell College in rural Iowa, surrounded by corn-fields and fueled by small-town coffee. While there I studied the evolution of the smallest galaxies in the local universe using hydrodynamic simulations as part of the N-Body Shop collaboration. I’ve also previously studied the color evolution of massive galaxies using the SIMBA cosmological simulations.

This page will be a home for updates about my research projects, publications, and growth as a scientist. Follow the links below to learn more.