About: I am a paleoclimatologist interested in how abrupt climate, hydrologic, and ecosystem changes develop, especially what earth system processes might be responsible for generating abrupt climate changes, and how these changes produce impacts on humans and resources such as water and forests. By developing new records and mapping changes at regional to hemispheric scales, my work examines how past climates have responded to interacting factors such as orbital change, ice sheets, and surface-atmosphere feedbacks.
Education: Ph.D. University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (2016) Dissertation: The Spatial and Temporal Evolution of Holocene Climates in North America and Europe Advisor: Bryan Shuman M.S. University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (2011) Thesis: Moisture and temperature changes associated with the mid-Holocene Tsuga decline in the northeastern United States Advisor: Bryan Shuman B.S. University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Geography (2008) Advisor: John W. Williams
Professional/Research Experience: Postdoctoral Research Associate, UW-Madison, Department of Geosciences (October 2016 - present) Graduate Research Assistant, University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (Fall, 2009 - Fall, 2016) Environmental Protection Agency Science to Achieve Results Fellow, (Fall, 2014 - Fall, 2016) Roy J. Shlemon Fellow, University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (Fall, 2013 - Fall, 2014) NASA Space Grant Consortium Fellow, University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (Fall, 2012 - Fall, 2013) Teaching Assistant, University of Wyoming, Department of Geology and Geophysics (Fall, 2010 & 2013, Spring, 2012)
Awards and Honors: J.H. Hanley Memorial Scholarship, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Univ. of Wyoming (Fall, 2016) Best Student Poster Award, American Quaternary Association Biennial Meeting, Santa Fe, NM (Summer, 2016) EPA STAR Fellowship, (Fall, 2014 - Fall, 2016) Roy J. Shlemon Fellowship, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Univ. of Wyoming (Fall, 2013 - Fall, 2014) NASA Space Grant Fellowship, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Univ. of Wyoming (Fall, 2012 - Fall, 2013) Outstanding Master's Student Award, University of Wyoming, (2011) Pathways Scholar's Program Fellow, Department of Geography, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, (2007)
Professional Affiliations and Service: American Geophysical Union, Member American Quaternary Association, Member Association of American Geographers, Member Reviewer for Ecosphere, Quaternary Research, Quaternary Science Reviews, The Holocene, Nature Commnications, and Science Advances Mentor for the McNair Scholars Program (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014), and the Student Research Apprenticeship Program (2010) Conducted a lesson on Global Climate Change Impacts on Natural Resources for a high school Ecology course (November, 2016) Grandparent's University, Instructor, UW-Extension and Outreach - 2009 and 2017