Biology is more than the strict scientific study of life and thus I take an inclusive, interdisciplinary approach to the subject. By collaborating with other scientists, visual artists, and writers, I work to advance our understanding and create connections among the scientific, ethical, and personal dimensions of biology. As a founding member of the Ecological Research as Education Network (EREN), I helped build an international network of faculty dedicated to advancing ecological science and teaching through undergraduate engagement. The EREN project TurtlePop, of which I was the lead scientist, brought together over 30 faculty and 1000 undergraduates across the eastern United States to investigate how urbanization affects freshwater turtles. I also write fiction and creative nonfiction with a biological slant that entertains and informs both in an out of the classroom. Elizabethtown College students have the opportunity to develop their own writing and scientific skills in IC201: Ecology in Short Fiction, a course I co-teach with Dr. Matt Skillen, professor of English. I also collaborate with Dr. Kristi Arnold, professor of Fine Arts, on a project in which our respective art and ecology students create artwork from handcrafted paper they made from algae harvested from the campus lake. This project promotes creative solutions to environmental problems.
The interdisciplinary approach to my profession is a natural extension of my formal academic training. I earned a Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia, a M.S. in Conservation Ecology and Sustainable Development from the University of Georgia, and a B.S. in Natural Resource Management from Rutgers University. Prior to arriving at Elizabethtown College, I was a visiting professor in the biology departments at Franklin and Marshall College and the University of Richmond. Prior to graduate school, I worked as a conservation intern with the Florida Park Service through the Student Conservation Association (SCA).