High resolution macro of Wasp found in Greece

Administration and Leadership

Training students, Phylogenetics Workshop, Brazil

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Education, Postdoctoral Appointments

1992 - 1993.

American Museum of Natural History, New York. Kalbfleisch Fellow.

1992.

Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris. Poste d’Acceuille, visiting sub-director of entomology.

1991 - 1992.

Harvard University, postdoctoral researcher.

1989 - 1991.

University of Georgia, postdoctoral researcher.

1988.

University of Kansas, postdoctoral researcher.

1981 - 1988.

University of Kansas, Department of Entomology, Ph.D.

1976 - 1981.

Harvard College, Department of Biology, Bachelor of Arts, with Honors.

Honors

2015.

Human Diversity Award, Organization for Biological Field Stations.

2008.

Visiting Professor and Fellow, UNESP, São José do Rio Preto, SP, Brazil.

2004.

Ohio State University Scarlet and Gray Honorary Professor.

2002.

Mortar Board, OSU student honor society recognition.

1998.

OSU Outstanding Teacher Award, finalist (nomination by undergraduate students).

1998.

OSU Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching (OSU’s highest award).

1993.

Elected Fellow, Willi Hennig Society.

1992.

Tiszaprogressz Foundation, Kossuth University, Debrecen, Hungary, Visiting Scientist.

1987.

Entomological Society of America President's Prize.

Teaching

At Ohio State, I taught across the curriculum, from Introductory Biology for non-majors to specialty graduate courses. I received several recognitions for my teaching, including the Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching, the highest teaching award OSU gives. My 2004 essay “Why I teach introductory courses” was widely used in faculty training programs at Ohio State and also UCLA. Along with other partners, I ran a workshop to train students in phylogenetic methods for more than ten years. This workshop was offered in the US, Mexico, and Brazil. To my knowledge, it was the only workshop that taught methods covering morphology, behavior, or DNA, and included the competing paradigms of parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian methods. While the competition among these methods was historically contentious and sometimes political, we promoted that students learn them all. At Carnegie Museum, I initiated a course in temperate ecology for Latin American students that ran for 10 years and was awarded the Human Diversity Award from the Organization for Biological Field Stations..

Areas of Scholarly Research: 

My focal topics are phylogenetic perspectives in behavioral evolution, arthropod biology, biomonitoring, and forest ecology. Publications currently number 109, with more than 4,300 citations on Google Scholar, H index = 36, RG score = 95th percentile. I developed tools for educational purposes using Virtual Reality, gigapixel photomontage, and also drone-based photogrammetry. These projects are found under the Research tab.

Recent Grants:

Through my role as Director over the past 10 years, Powdermill Nature Reserve has garnered 17 competitive grants worth about $6M. Listed below are those written principally by me.

2021

Renovation of passive AMD system, educational trail, habitat restoration. Abandoned Mine Reclamation PILOT program. $1,200,000.

2020.

Powdermill Avian Research Center. Richard King Mellon Foundation, $1,000,000.

2018.

Management plan and restoration methods for the rare parasitic tree Pyrularia pubera (buffalo nut.) Wildlife Resource Conservation Program, $26,203.

2016.

Ecosystem function, emerging technology, and the human impact in the Appalachian region. Richard King Mellon Foundation, $700,000.

2016.

Temperate ecology for Latin American students; US teacher training. Westmoreland Foundation, $19,990.

2016.

Genetic health and reproductive biology of rare Pyrularia pubera (buffalo nut). Wildlife Resource Conservation Program, $31,486.

2015.

Gigapixel digital teaching collection, National Science Foundation, $169,000, prepared jointly with Marti Louw.

2014.

New laboratory building, National Science Foundation, $347,000.

2014.

New trails and educational signs, PA Department of Community & Economic Development, $67,000.

2013.

Temperate ecology for Latin American students; Westmoreland Foundation, $17,000.

2013.

Artificial nesting habitat for native bees. Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, $25,000.

2012.

Maintenance and improvement of facilities at Powdermill Nature Reserve. Pittsburgh Foundation. Award $50,000.

2011.

CMNH Center for Biodiversity and Ecosystems. RK Mellon Foundation Award $730,000.