Voting for NAGT's open positions for National Officers is officially open! This year's ballot includes Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer, and three Councilors-at-Large. Voting begins on May 30 and ends on July 1, 2018.
Officer Candidate Biographies
Vice President
Jennifer Wenner is a Professor of Geology at University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. Her expertise is igneous petrology and geochemistry, focused on arc magmatism and the formation of continental crust; and geoscience education, focused on the teaching and learning of quantitative skills in the geosciences. At Oshkosh, she teaches Physical Geology, Mineralogy, Petrology, Geochemistry, and field courses to Hawaii and Eastern California. She is also the co-editor of
The Math You Need, When You Need It, quantitative resources for students in introductory geoscience (an NAGT sponsored project) and
Teaching Quantitative Skills in the Geosciences. She has designed and organized nine workshops focused on increasing qualitative skills in the geosciences, has helped to facilitate nine other workshops focused on teaching, and has attended 14 workshops designed to improve teaching.
Education: BA, Geology, Carleton College; PhD, Geology, Boston University.
Professional Experience : Professor of Geology, UW Oshkosh (2000-present).
Professional Activity: NAGT Councilor at Large (2016-present), CUR Councilor, Geoscience Division, (2013-2016), PI for NSF CCLI Phase 1 (2008-2012) and CCLI Phase 2 grants (2010-2015); PI for NSF Petrology and Geochemistry Grant (2014-2018).
Professional Service: Panelist for NSF (Petrology/Geochemistry, REU, CCLI), reviewer for JGE, Numeracy, Bulletin of Volcanology,
Eos; research mentor to 45 undergraduate students (1997-present).
Secretary/Treasurer
Frank R. Hladky is an Oregon registered geologist and current president of the Pacific Northwest Section of NAGT. His professional experience spans the gamut of federal and state government, corporate, education, and small business service. He is retired from the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) and from Coquille High School where he taught dual-credit geology in cooperation with Southwestern Oregon Community College. He was NAGT's 2011 OEST Pacific Northwest Section awardee. His geological and teaching focus emphasized ground-truth and field methods as can be seen within his publications (including 17 geologic maps published by the U.S. Geological Survey and DOGAMI). He and many former students would attribute their choice to pursue careers in the sciences to evidence-based learning. He has pertinent fiduciary and regulatory skills, honed over the last few years as a co-owner with responsibilities overseeing the financial well-being of a 15-employee, small-business operation located in North Bend, Oregon. A member since 2012, service with NAGT is one of his most enjoyable geological outlets.
Education: B.S. Geology, University of Oregon; M.S. Geology, Idaho State University. Professional Experience: U.S. Geological Survey (1982-1985), Idaho State University (1985-1987), Newmont Exploration Ltd. (1987-1989), Oregon Dept. of Geology and Mineral Industries (1989-2004), Coquille School District (2004-2017), Phase 3 Corporation (2015-present).
Councilor-at-Large
Reginald Archer is an assistant professor of Applied GIS in the Department of Agricultural and Environmental sciences at Tennessee State University (TSU). He applies Geographic Information Systems/Science & Remote Sensing to analyze spatial data, and to conduct research, and use the "science of where" to conduct research, specifically environmental change related to sustainability, public health, hazards, risk, vulnerability and disaster recovery; and he teaches multiple courses on Geospatial applications at both undergraduate and graduate level.
Reginald actively engages in campus wide activities to increase STEM participation and is a Lifetime member and TSU Chapter advisor of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). He is also an active member of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT) and the HBCU Geoscience working group. He was a convener for the Strengthening Geoscience Competency for HBCU Pre-Service Teachers Workshop February 2–4 2017 hosted at TSU and is a Traveling Workshop Program leader for Integrate and NAGT. At the Earth Educators' Rendezvous in 2017, Albuquerque, NM, he led a roundtable discussion entitled Building Pathways to Geoscience Graduate Programs. He is dedicated to increasing the number of underrepresented students in STEM and regularly participates as a mentor in programs such as Tennessee Achieves, and STEM related summer camps.
Education: PhD in Geography from the University of California Santa Barbara, MS in Civil Engineering and BS in Surveying and Mapping, both from the University of Florida.
Councilor-at-Large
Aisha R. Morris is an Education Specialist and the Director of the Research Experiences in Solid Earth Science for Students (RESESS) internship program managed by UNAVCO. Aisha's primary area of focus is crafting strategies for recruiting, training, and retaining the geoscience workforce of the future. In her current position, Aisha is responsible for UNAVCO's Geo-Workforce Development Initiative, including managing undergraduate and graduate student internship programs and supporting early career professionals as they transition into the geoscience workforce.
Education: B.S. Geology, Duke University; M.Sc. and Ph.D., Geology and Geophysics University of Hawaii at Manoa; Postdoctoral Fellowship, Syracuse University. Professional experience and service: Leadership Board Member, Earth Science Women's Network (ESWN); External Advisory Committee Member, Syracuse University graduate level STEM training program: "Education Model Program on Water-Energy Research" (EMPOWER) (2015-2020); Committee member, AGU Excellence in Geophysical Education Award Committee (2015-2017); NSF panelist (2013-2017); Diversity and Inclusion Task Force Member, American Geophysical Union (2017-2018).
Councilor-at-Large
Catherine Riihimaki is Associate Director, Science Education with Princeton University's Council on Science and Technology (CST), which works toward broadening and deepening engagement in science and engineering. Her background is in geomorphology, and so she works most intensively on projects involving the geosciences and environmental sciences, with collaborators from across many disciplines, including the Princeton University Art Museum and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Catherine has been a leader or participant in several NAGT and SERC projects, including the Traveling Workshop Program, the Earth Educators' Rendezvous, the Classroom Observation Project, and the Geoscience Faculty Survey research team. At Princeton, she teaches within the Environmental Studies and Freshman Seminar programs, works with faculty on improving general education science courses, consults on University educational policies, conducts education research on curriculum developments, and organizes interdisciplinary seminars and panels.
Education: BA Geosciences and Mathematics, Williams College; PhD Earth Science, University of California, Santa Cruz. Professional Experience: Associate Director, Science Education, Council on Science and Technology, Princeton University (2012-present); Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Drew University (2008-2012); Lecturer and Keck Postdoctoral Fellow, Bryn Mawr College (2004-2008); Visiting Assistant Professor, Colby College (2003-2004).
