What's Happening with Alumni

Gary Haynes, MA ’74
I am an instructor of geography at OU Chillicothe and Lancaster campuses offering introductory courses in human, physical, and environmental areas. During the past year, I was selected to represent the Chillicothe campus as a faculty participant in the Athens campus directed Kanawha Environmental Education Project. This project’s goal is to enhance environmental literacy of undergraduates by revising course content to include environmental themes. Additionally, I have voluntarily become the point person in developing an environmental land lab at a 250 acre farm that was donated to the University. My family and I continue to make improvements to our house and farm and make a point to take one good geography-type vacation each summer—the mountains, the coast, cultural enrichment, and all of the above. My e-mail address is haynes@ohio.edu.

Joe Moore  BS '74
I am about to "retire" as state soil scientist in Alaska after 34 years with the USDA. We have come a long way in Alaska from simply mapping soils to studying and mapping the interaction of the various physical and biotic elements of ecosystems. An OU Geography education provided the background to implement these changes and our emphasis is now to recruit employees who have a good understanding of physical geography. It has been a great 'ride' and an opportunity to experience over time the impacts that climate change is having on the physical environment and cultural infrastructure of northern latitudes. Alaska has become home and my wife Sandy and I plan to remain here with our two sons and three grandchildren. I am planning to keep busy as an adjunct instructor of physical geography and volunteering in resource management activities.

Frederick Siekkinen, MSES ’74
I have been employed by the Department of Environmental Protection, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania since 1986. I started out as a solid waste specialist and was promoted to an environmental protection specialist in 1992. I currently hold that position within the Bureau of Investigations, which is the investigative section of the Department. Working on the civil side of the law, our section supports the various programs of the Department through investigations, conducting training, acquiring samples, conducting interviews, and surveillances. On the criminal side, I support the Environmental Crimes Section of the Office of Attorney General in a capacity very much like a crime scene specialist. I also conduct training and lecture at the Northeast Environmental Enforcement Project on crime scene documentation and response. I have also acquired a background in responding to clandestine labs and acquiring evidence for environmental prosecutions.

Dhawatchai Tangsanga, MS ’74
I attended OU from 1972–74 in a newly established Department (branched out of School of Architecture) called Regional Planning—a two-year multi-disciplinary program leading to a master’s degree. Head of the department was Charles Leach. Another lecturer was William Hoyt. There were 12–14 students in the program. No new students in the second year so the Department was discontinued and only one class graduated. After graduation, I returned to Thailand and started working in the public sector at the Ministry of Industry where I spent nearly my entire working life. At the ministry I was mainly responsible for international relations and played a role in Thailand’s bilateral and multi-lateral trade and investment agreements including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Free Trade Area (AFTA). I retired from public service as an inspector general and became head of the National Productivity Institute from 2001–2005. In 2004, I had the pleasure of visiting OU in commemoration of its 200th Anniversary. It was truly a memorable experience. Sadly, none of the staff at Admin Department or Alumni Office knew anything about the existence of the Regional Planning program.
Regrettably, I have lost contact with my professors and all my classmates. Any help from alumni office or any alumni to revisit the memory of the Regional Planning Department or to renew contacts amongst its graduating class shall be most appreciated.

John R. DeMuth, BS ’75
I recently “retired” as deputy director at the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission via an early retirement incentive program. To date, my satisfying 32-year career has focused on aspects of community, regional, and environmental planning at three employers: Cuyahoga County Regional Planning Commission, Madison–Madison International, and Cuyahoga County Planning Commission. I intend to reactivate my career after some summer time off. My wife, Marilyn, and I have three children and five grandchildren. I recently visited the OU campus for an eye-opening tour (the first in almost twenty years) with my youngest son who is considering attendance next year. I continue to maintain that the four years I spent at OU were filled with THE BEST OF TIMES!

Deborah Phillips King, BS ’75
I continue to teach at The University of Akron Department of Geography and Planning. Courses include cartography, maps and map reading, and field research methods. We are always looking for good graduate students! My husband, Tom, is the community development director in Hudson, Ohio where we live and our three children are all in college. I’m happy to report that one is a Bobcat in Athens!

Dennis Houmard, MSES ‘75
I retired in March 2006 as Enterprise Systems Architect from the USDA Forest Service after 32 years of federal service, including 26 with the Forest Service, 3 with the National Park Service, and 3 with DoD. I also worked 3 years for Ohio DNR.  I now operate East Hill Technologies LLC, a part-time IT consulting business, specializing in federal sector work. My wife Sue (BSED ’75) teaches middle school science and plans to retire in 2010. We are both in our 24th year as part-time ski instructors at Snowshoe, and I also work part-time as a fly fishing guide. Sue has gotten into equestrian sports in a big way (never take up a hobby that eats!!!) and I still do a lot of long-distance cycling. We reside in Elkins, WV. My email is houmard@easthilltec.com.

Mark Hardenberg, MA '80
After graduation, he went to work for the Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory as a technical editor, and retired early in February 2007. While there, he was the chief editor for his last seven years and even got to work on some geographical things. He was part of the team that put the Formerly Used Defense Sites (FUDS) Management Integration System (MIS) into the public’s hands via the Web. These are abandoned US Army sites all over the US, the fates of which he found fascinating. Now that he is on a pension he enjoys selling military surplus and antiques on eBay and in the local flea market. His oldest daughter, Wendy, is finishing up a dual masters at Indiana U., while his youngest daughter, after a bumpy teenhood, is at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts as a music major.

Martin Hudson, MA '82
After leaving Ohio University I took a job with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Huntington, WV in which my first major project was determining optimal flows from Summerville Reservoir to enhance whitewater recreation.  Being a native of Utah, I had to get back west to an area with "heroic" landscapes.  I ended up in Portland, Oregon and in 1999 became the Chief of Planning for the Portland, Oregon Corps of Engineers District.  In that position I managed a team of engineers and scientists in developing projects for navigation, ecosystem restoration, water supply, flood control, salmon recovery, and recreation.  After 8 years, I joined Corps' Northwestern Division.  In my current job I am the senior policy and planning lead for the Planning, Environmental Resources and Fish Policy and Support Division at the Division office.  I currently provide technical and policy guidance to Seattle District, Portland District, Walla Walla District, Omaha District, and Kansas City District - essentially those Districts in the watersheds of the Columbia and Missouri Rivers.  My passions include duck hunting, running rivers, traveling and fly fishing.   During the fall and early winter I spend my time in the estuaries and wetlands of the Pacific Northwest.  When I am not at work or in the field, my wonderful bride and I enjoy spending time together either traveling, running rivers in our drift boat (a whitewater dory), or searching out, tasting, and collecting handcrafted wines of the Northwest.  

Mike Kukral, BS ’82
It is an exciting year for students at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology because they have the opportunity for field studies in Europe with him. Mike will be directing and leading 17 engineering students to Austria and the Czech Republic for two weeks in June—the first such credit program directed by him in an attempt to get Hoosiers (and others) out into the world and appreciative and aware, or at least wary, of other cultures and places. He was given the go ahead last year and started from the ground up in planning this excursion. OU geographers facilitated Mike’s plans because of the excellent training in field experience gleaned from Porter Hall days with professors Wilhelm, Bloemer, Bernard, Bain, and Isaac. He well remembers our sojourns to Amish land, the Denver AAG (by station wagon with Ron Isaac and Doc Dougherty), Pomeroy salt mines, the Athens porch couch tour, and too long gone tipples, barns, and pits of “yellow dog.” Mike’s students will be taking in the sights and sounds of Vienna, Innsbruck, Carlsbad, and Prague. Being the lone geographer at an engineering college does has its advantages and he feels fortunate that his three courses each quarter are always filled to capacity. Much of that success he recognizes and owes to the excellent classroom pedagogy he came to appreciate (but not as a freshmen!) during his various times at OU. Athens is a great place when you are in college. He thinks he’ll retire there someday. Contact Mike at kukral@rosehulman.edu.

Michael Ley, BA '82
I completed my Geography degree at Ohio University on the military's "BOOTSTRAP" program, focusing on Cartography. As a
serving Army Intelligence Officer, a degree in Geography fit well with my Intelligence-related duties. My follow-on assignment was to the U.S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca, AZ where I tested Electronic Warfare and Airborne Radar systems. In 1985 I studied at the Defense Mapping School, Fort Belvoir, VA where I completed the Mapping, Charting and Geodesy Course and was awarded Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) 21C, Topographic Engineer. I was then assigned to Combat Support Coordination Team 3 (CSCT 3), Yong-in, South Korea where I served as the Intelligence Collection Manager for the U.S. Army Liaison team. Because of my degree and prior testing experience I was also placed on a special DMZ surveillance team. Also, and just prior to departing for South Korea, I was able to work with the United States Military Academy (West Point)  Geography Department and the Geography Department at Georgia Tech University and obtain the first computer generated 2D / 3D GIS package used in Korea.

Upon my return to Fort Huachuca I was designated an Operational Test Officer and served as the Intelligence Corps' liaison to the Engineer Corps and their Digital Topographic Support System (DTSS), a tactical mapping and distribution center housed by two 5-ton trucks. In 1990 I retired from active duty and during the next twelve years worked on a variety of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), military Intelligence training support packages, and computer systems. In 2003 I served as lead developer for the State of South Carolina Intelligence Fusion Center then in September 2005 I took a position in Jacksonville, FL with the U.S. Marine Corps as an Antiterrorism Officer and Intelligence Coordinator. In this capacity on a daily basis I employ my GIS training. One recent project was the development of a quick reference guide (with maps and satellite imagery) for 61 foreign ports. This publication proved of value when USMC assets deployed to Haiti following the earthquake.

I will always remember the professionalism and friendliness of the Ohio U. Geography faculty, especially Dr. Hugh Bloemer who served as my chief mentor and an individual I continue to maintain contact with. As most of my family continue to reside in Athens, I visit nearly every year. I welcome the opportunity to discuss my training and experiences with faculty and students alike.  Go Bobcats! Mley2@bellsouth.net and 904-548-9804.

Andy Bagas, MA ’83
Andy has been employed by the Town of Bridgewater, MA as the highway superintendent for the past 22 years. He is responsible for all roadway maintenance and improvement projects. His education at OU was valuable in preparing him for many facets of his work including land use planning, drainage engineering and design, and meteorology (yes, we plow snow in Bridgewater). On a personal note, his youngest daughter will attend U. of Massachusetts this September. His eldest daughter will graduate from U. of Massachusetts and attend Mass College of Pharmacy. He and his wife hope to vacation in Ohio in July with a possible visit to Athens. He looks forward to hearing from “old” friends from OU.

Vince Mazeika, MA ’84
Since graduation, I’ve been employed with Ohio EPA’s Division of Surface Water where I apply geography skills on a daily basis–the watershed concept. Yet some of the most fulfilling work I’ve done has been teaching Geography 121 (Human Geography) at the Lancaster campus. (The Department faculty on main campus provided many fine examples to emulate.) Last August, I made a three-week trip into the Baltic states. Partly a search for long forgotten relatives and partly driven by intense curiosity for this little known (to Americans) and less understood corner of northeast Europe. Surprises abounded: a near pristine and accessible Baltic Sea coast; very well developed tourism information centers; and a fierce pride in unique languages and cultural history. My next visit will be a cycling tour—the region’s glacial legacy-left landscapes similar to northern Wisconsin and Minnesota studded with lakes and wetlands. I very much look forward to teaching another class of Geography 121 this coming winter quarter and will incorporate some “Baltic elements” in the class.

Margaret Seebald, BS ’85
In May 2009, I graduated with honors from Frederick (Maryland) Community College’s School of Nursing as a registered nurse.

Our daughter Laura is a freshman at Ohio University majoring in Political Science. Margaret and Bob reside in Middletown, Maryland.

Bob Seebald, BS ’85
I graduate in June 2009 from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces with a MS in National Defense Resource Management. I am the associate deputy director of the International Affairs Office at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency where I have worked for the past 24 years.

Tony Lafferty, MA ’86
Living and working in Northern California. I have been with ESRI for the past 12 years. Active in the running community–“ran” into Jonathon Bernard at the Miwok 100k Ultra Race near San Francisco. Busy, preparing for my one shot at running Western States 100-mile Endurance Race scheduled for June 2010.

Tom Harner, BS ’88
I have been the GIS coordinator at the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) in Dayton, Ohio since 1999. Using GIS in a planning context has been a very rewarding and challenging experience. Prior to joining MVRPC, I also worked for Clermont County, Ohio as GIS manager and Woolpert where I first started using GIS. I am an adjunct faculty member at Sinclair Community College in Dayton teaching an introductory GIS class in the Geography Department. Married with three children, teaching is sometimes a welcome break.

Fritz Kessler, BS ’88. As an associate professor at Frostburg State U. Department of Geography, he has been teaching a mix of geography and cartography courses for eight years. The third edition of a textbook he co-authored entitled Thematic Cartography and Geovisualization has just been published by Pearson Prentice Hall. He is also the current editor of Cartographic Perspectives, a peerreviewed journal focusing on a variety of cartographic themes.

Robin Rhodes Crowell, BS’92
After leaving OU, I went on to live in Anchorage, AK and teach geography at a charter school. I then moved and received an M.S.Ed. from the State University of New York at Potsdam. I have lived in the Potsdam, NY (way up near the Canadian border) area for 15 years. I now teach ESL (English as a Second Language) to international students and also teach at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY (teaching American students who might go on to live abroad and teach English).  I have two daughters, ages 8 and 12, and my husband and I have a small hobby farm in the foothills of the Adirondacks. We have renovated a pre-civil war farmhouse.  My family and I just returned from China and I have been lucky enough to also travel to Italy, Rwanda, Spain and others. We also own an international Fair Trade shop and gallery in the heart of Potsdam, NY.

Richard Gassan, MA ’92, since 2005, has been an assistant professor of history at the American U. of Sharjah, which is about five miles from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Between semesters, he returns to his house in Amherst, MA. His first book, The Birth of American Tourism: New York, the Hudson Valley, and American Culture, 1790-1830, is to be published in August, 2008, from the U. of Massachusetts Press, and he is working on a follow-up that takes that history to the Civil War.

Gregory Marinic, BS ’91
(I was one of the first student design coordinators of the Geogram! It’s great to see the publication is still in production nearly 20 years later.) I am professor of architecture at CUNY, New York City College of Technology and visiting assistant professor of Interior Architecture at Pratt Institute in New York City where I teach undergraduate advanced architectural design studios and undergraduate/graduate thesis in interior design. I frequently participate as a guest jury critic at Pratt Institute and Fordham University. I am co-founder and director of the d3 Gallery in Brooklyn, an organization that promotes innovative transdisciplinary approaches in art, architecture, urbanism, and design. I am co-principal in the New York City-based architectural practice Studio Marinic Nguyen. My design portfolio includes multiple winning competition entries for affordable housing in Manhattan, a competition finalist entry for a high-rise residential tower in Dubai, and a competition finalist proposal for a skyscraper in Chicago. Additional large-scale projects include a campus master plan and residence hall for George Washington University, a terminal expansion for Manchester International Airport, a proposal for the jetBlue Airways Terminal at JFK Airport, and a residential tower and boutique hotel in Las Vegas. I received my Master of Architecture from University of Maryland where I graduated with honors and was awarded the School of Architecture Thesis Citation. My thesis proposed a new international airport for Ljubljana, Slovenia through exploration of regional and modernist themes in aviation architecture. I am a recipient of both the Leonard Dressel Scholarship and Jack Kerxton Internship & Scholarship. While attending Ohio University, I studied under the guidance of Dr. Nancy Bain.

Erin Smith Hite, BS '92
I am now working as an Environmental Health and Safety Engineer for Cree Inc. in Durham NC. We manufacture LED’s for energy efficient lighting solutions. My responsibilities have shifted more to health and safety in the past five years, but I still dabble in air and water permits and other environmental projects as they come up. I miss Athens, it has been almost 10 years since I was there last, much has changed, but the department looks good. I miss working for Dr. Bloemer in the Cartography lab, but that was back when we did everything with pens and paper! I am married with two step-children, one of whom is in her second year of college at UNC. I continue to ride and compete my horse and my husband is co-owner of a Café/music establishment in downtown Durham.

John Maximuk, BS ’92
Since leaving Athens, his ventures have taken him to Amherst, Wilmington, Washington, DC, and Boston. Since 2003, he has been living and working in Atlanta. He settled in the Candler Park neighborhood, an older area that was Atlanta’s second streetcar suburb. It’s a curious location—a rare east/west site of the Eastern Sub-Continental Divide! Though his surroundings have changed, he is still the city planner that he set out to be as an OU Geography student. His current work involves smart growth advocacy with the Livable Communities Coalition (www.LivableCommunitiesCoalition.org). His interest in design-oriented planning has lead to a two-year term as chair of the American Planning Association’s Urban Design and Preservation Division. But the biggest news for him recently has been parenthood. He and his wife, Lily, welcomed their daughter Stella in March 2006. All the best to friends from the Class of 1992 and to everyone in the department. It would be great to hear from you (maxjohn9@yahoo.com).

Tim Greenleaf, BS ’94
Tim is back at National Geographic managing the Internet operations for the Expeditions division. Prior to that, he spent over five years at Environmental Working Group developing information activism strategies and introducing elements of Web 2.0 to EWG’s interactive projects about protecting public health and the environment. He lives in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, DC with his fianceé, Katie. Contact him via e-mail at tim@timgreenleaf.com.

J. Randall Engwert, BS ’95
I received a Juris Doctor from University of Toledo, College of Law in 1999 and went on to work as an assistant attorney general in the Ohio Attorney General’s Office Environmental Enforcement Section where I represented the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency Division of Air Pollution Control. I entered private practice in 2004 and am now a Partner with Anspach Meeks Ellenberger LLP in its Toledo, Ohio office. While my career has strayed from its environmental roots, I continue to apply the practical problem solving skills I learned in the Department of Geography at OU in my representation of clients ranging from individuals to large corporations.

Ken Curry, MA ’96
I married fellow Ohio U alum Lynn Zanski and we now celebrate each day with three wonderful children—Milah, Maeve, and Bennett. Besides the obvious of keeping busy with family life, I have a GIS company with two partners. We provide GIS services and products to government and private sector clients with a focus on rural GIS implementation and Web mapping applications. I still find time to traverse the northwoods in Canada trekking by canoe and backpack into the shield region in search of solitude and simple living for at least a week! Lynn and I don’t travel as much with the kids, but we look forward to returning to Athens and the many other places we traveled as the kids get older.

Kristina (Michelson) Tridico, BS ’96
I practice mergers and acquisitions law at Ice Miller LLP in Indianapolis, Indiana, and am a partner in the Business Group. I am chair of Ice Miller’s sustainability and climate change practice focusing on renewable energy, carbon trade, and green development matters. My husband, Andy, and I welcomed our second Bobcat, Gus, in 2008 and he has a proud big sister, Anna Sophia.

Steven Sushka, BS ‘96
Over the last 12 years I have worked in Photogrammetry, GIS and Enterprise Asset Management. I started with Woolpert, Inc. in ’98 producing DOQQS for USGS. In ’01 I switched to Woolpert’s GIS department and got involved in geodatabase design and enterprise ArcSDE implementations. I then started implementing and integrating Cityworks, a GIS-centric CMMS by Aztec Systems Inc., in ’04  and earned my GISP Certification in ’08.  I currently work out of my home in Carmel, Indiana for Azteca Systems as Cityworks Support Rep.

Mark Fonstad, MA ‘97
After finishing my MA at Ohio, I went on to do a Ph.D. in Geography at Arizona State University, then a post-doctoral fellowship at Montana State University. In 2001 I began a tenure track faculty position in the Department of Geography at Texas State University. I have just recently joined the faculty of the Department of Geography at the University of Oregon, where I teach courses such as hydrology, remote sensing, and the physical geography of Oregon. For the past two years, I have been the Environmental Sciences Editor of the Annals of the Association of American Geographers, and I am also editing a special volume of that journal on the subject of water. I am currently the Chair of the Geomorphology Specialty Group of the AAG. Research-wise, I have spent the past decade helping to build a new science: the remote sensing and simulation of riverscapes, and it has been quite a ride. My field work has been in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, Yellowstone

Thomas Oaks, BS ‘97
I graduated from OU in 1997 with a BS in Geography and an Environmental Studies Certificate. After graduation I attended Towson University in Towson, Maryland and received my MA in geography with emphasis in Environmental Geography. I am currently working as a GIS Analyst and Technical Marketer for ESRI in the Washington DC office.

Cary Sanders, BS ’97
I work as a senior cartographer doing GIS work at Wiser Company in Murfreeesboro, Tennessee and am married with one 13-month-old son, Noah.

Jeffrey McKee, BS ’98
I have worked for Abbott Nutrition, Abbott Laboratories since October 2002. In March 2009, I was promoted to scientist within the Technical Services, Product Research & Development Group and am now a project leader for formulation development within this team.

John Waldron, MA '98, received the Henry Cowles Award for Publications in Biogeography from the AAG Biogeog SG. John is currently Assistant Prof in Environmental Studies at the Unv. of West Florida.

Kristen Allore, BS ’99
I graduated from OU in 1999 with a BS in Environmental Geography with the Certificate in Environmental Studies. I currently am the program director at New Pond Farm in West Redding, CT, a non-profit Environmental Education Center and working farm.

Jeff Leonhard, BS ’99
I am the district manager for Pictometry International Corporation. I manage the government sales in Indiana and Illinois for our Geospatial products including geo-referenced oblique aerial imagery and lidar. Pictometry is the world leader in Intelligent Oblique Aerial Photography. I currently reside in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Jeffery Tremelling, MA ’99
Moved to Cary, NC in October 2007 after four years of living as an expatriate in Bangkok, Thailand. He is currently an associate director for Family Health International’s Product Quality and Compliance laboratory.

Trevor Walsh, BS ’99
After spending many years in non-formal Science Education, I am now working as an educational sales consultant for Nystrom Social Studies­—one of the largest providers of maps and globes to schools in the country. I currently reside in Oregon, Ohio and work with over 1,400 schools in 28 counties in Ohio. My wife and I are also expecting our first child in November.

Matthew Fasig, BS ’00
Matthew is a data analyst for National City Mortgage in Dayton, Ohio. He spends his spare time with his wife and active two-year-old, Kaitlyn.

Ryan Phillips, BS ’00
continues to work for Miami NBC affiliate WTVJ as their weekday morning meteorologist. He will marry Kathryn Cassens (Seattle, WA) June 7, 2008 in Fort Lauderdale.

Andy Pressman, BS ’00
Has been farming organically for the past eight years. During this time, he received a Masters degree in Sustainable Systems from Slippery Rock U. Although he is still a farmer, he is currently an agriculture program specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology. He works with projects involving sustainable agriculture and renewable energy. He feels that he owes this career path to Dr. Anderson and Dr. Jokisch!

Jim Maczko, MA ’01
I became the warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service (NWS) in Jackson, Kentucky in late April 2009 after spending June 2007­–April 2009 as a senior forecaster at the NWS in Louisville, Kentucky. I am responsible for managing inter-agency communications, public education programs, and weather safety awareness campaigns. I am currently working closely with the Kentucky State Emergency Management Agency to designate 32 Kentucky State Parks as StormReady. I can be reached anytime at James.Maczko@noaa.gov.

Tony Mathys, MA ‘01
I am at the University of Edinburgh, where I work in research and research support in the area of geospatial metadata/standards, geoportals and data repositories for UK academia. I can thank the OU geography department for that! Then again, being considered an expert on geospatial metadata and standards is not exactly glamorous, but someone has to do it! I'm sure it's introduced and emphasized in your entry level GIS courses.

April Luginbuhl Mather, MA ’02
Is in the last stages of writing her dissertation in Geography at Ohio State U. and hopes to be finished by December 2008. She and husband Steve just moved to the Cleveland area where Steve accepted a position as GIS Manager for Cleveland Metroparks. The couple are expecting their first baby early this summer.

Jeff Whitman, MA ’02
Recently completed an MBA from Johns Hopkins U. Jeff accepted a position with the Department of the Navy in Mechanicsburg, PA as an Environmental Protection Specialist. Jeff is the team leader for Navy Pollution Prevention Department programs that strive to reduce pollution and waste from Navy ships.

Jay Boshara, MA ’03
Is teaching Geography at California State U. in San Bernardino. He is also working on his Geography Ph.D. from the U. of Iowa (coursework and dissertation research complete, taking comps in summer of 2008). He and his wife (Ece Algan, 2003 OU Ph.D. graduate in Communication Studies, and assistant professor of Media Studies at CSUSB) are also raising a two-and-a-half-year-old son Alex in Redlands, CA (the home of ESRI).

Kelly Cornell, BS ’03
I graduated from OU in 2003 with a BS in Environmental Geography. After graduation I attended George Washington University in Washington, DC and received my MA in geography with emphasis on Urban/Environmental Geography. I am currently working as a Transportation Planner for Arlington County, Virginia and also teach Geography at Marymount University.

Amelia Costanzo, BS ‘03
I left OU and ended up working in the same job I held over all breaks during college for a year afterward. I realized I needed a more specialized skill set to achieve my professional and personal goals. That's when I enrolled in the Masters of City and Regional Planning (MCRP) program at Ohio State. That program really set me up for some amazing experiences. I continued on to hold a Village Planner position in the Florida Keys. A strong social network brought me back to Columbus where I've now been for 5 years, working for the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission.  The connection between what I learned in the OU geography program and the expansive curriculum in the MCRP program at OSU is uncanny. I would encourage students to consider pursuing a similar degree and would be happy to talk with them through a mentoring program or other means.

Abigail Porter Ertel, MA ’03
Patrick Ertel, MA ’05
After Athens, Abby and Patrick have found themselves traveling and completing natural resource protection projects in New Brunswick, North Carolina and now northern Michigan. Both Abby and Patrick are involved with regional not-for-profit environmental organizations. Abby serves as an AmeriCorps member with the HeadWaters Land Conservancy (HWLC). Her position is geared towards working with private landowners to promote conservation through permanent land protection agreements. Throughout the process, Abby completes baseline assessments, monitoring visits and evaluations of private lands for potential conservation. It is her goal to complete ten baseline assessment visits during the 2009 field season. This work is in conjunction with HWLC’s Au Sable River Watershed Program and Pigeon River Habitat Initiative and will be a major stepping stone in the organization’s effort to permanently protect 6000 acres of land within the Pigeon River Country State Forest by 2012 and 10 miles of river frontage on one of Michigan’s most prestigious trout streams, the Au Sable, by 2011. Working for Huron Pines, Patrick spends his days managing multiple projects geared towards improving the region’s natural resources. Coordinating these large-scale projects includes: writing grant proposals and fundraising, organizing partners, budgeting, designing conceptual plans, preparing permit applications, presenting restoration options to the public, guiding field crews, working with contractors, and updating stakeholders. As he prepares for his fourth year with Huron Pines, Patrick is currently launching watershed-wide restoration projects that aim to reduce non-point source sediment and thermal pollution of small groundwater-fed tributaries, improve passage for native coldwater fish species, and remove small dams that interrupt the natural flow of stream resources.

Abby and Patrick live in an old farmhouse south of Grayling, Michigan with their two dogs. While Abby trains for her next marathon or tends to their 38 chickens, Patrick tries to outwit the weather and sandy soils in their organic garden.

Grant Gibson, BS ’03
Grant is the President/Founder of GIS Dynamics located in West Chester, OH. GIS Dynamics, a geographic information systems services company, currently employs seven OU graduates who focus in different forms of geography. From urban, engineering, business, computer science to government, our OU grads work in a diverse range of geography applications. We are proud of each one and hope to hire additional OU grads in the future. Here are the seven. . . Tim Price (BS ’02, MS ’04); Bill Sabo (BS ’04); Anne Hockman (BA ’04); Mike Kaczmarek (BS ’03); Larry Rover (BS ’06); Drew Gibson (completing BS in GIS at Miami after transferring from OU); Ryan Lane (BS expected ’08).

L. Scott Deaner, MA ‘04
I've been teaching Geography at Owens Community College in Toledo, OH since August of 2008 and I absolutely love it!  I am the sole Geographer in the college's Social and Behavioral Sciences Department.  I enjoy working with a lot of first-generation college students, like myself, and exposing them to the world of geography.  I've expanded our course offerings since I've gotten here so that now we offer 3 courses: Human Geography, Geography of the US & Canada, and World Regional Geography (Human and US & Canada are also offered as web courses).  I'm not only the college's only full-time geographer, I'm the only geographer period, so I teach them all.  Owens has around 20,000 students and is situated about halfway between University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University – the main campus is called the "Toledo campus" but we're really located in the suburb of Perrysburg (Owens also has a Findlay, OH campus; and Learning Centers in downtown Toledo and Maumee, OH). Most of our students tend to transfer to UT or BGSU, however, I did send one of my former students, Toni Smith, to OU in Fall for the International Studies (Africa) program.  Personal news:  Terri [Fofrich] Deaner (BS '03) and I were married in June of 2005, in Galbreath Chapel!

Tim Mayle, BS '04
Tim has been the GIS Coordinator for Hardin County since 2004. In 2008, the Hardin County GIS program was recognized by the Ohio Geographic Reference Information Program (OGRIP) with the 2008 OGRIP Best Practices Award. Tim is also the chairman of the Rhodes State College GIS Advisory Committee. Tim is also a content contributor for the GIS program at Northwest State Community College. In each role Tim has the following responibilites: collaborate with faculty during the development of the course; provide insight from professional or academic experience to enhance course design; lend expertise, specifically with outcomes, activities, and assessments; help align the course to students' preparation for professional practice or for future studies; communicate on a regular basis with the developer as appropriate during the development of the course. Tim has also worked on several projects with Grant Gibson '03 from GIS Dynamics. GIS Dynamics hosts the Hardin County GIS Web page, www.hcgis.com.

Timothy Price, MA ’04
After a short stint teaching GIS and other geography-related classes at Indiana University–Southeast, I moved to the Cincinnati area when a former student during my TA times at OU offered me a position with his newly-formed company. I’ve now been with that company, GIS Dynamics of West Chester, Ohio, for over four years and have since found myself doing things with my career that I would have never imagined.

In fact, GIS has taken me to far-off regions of the world, including trips to Nigeria, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Working alongside United Nations Peacekeeping Forces in Kinshasa, DRC, one of my recent projects involved implementing an enterprise GIS system to produce Topographic Line Maps (TLM50) of various regions using satellite imagery. Other African projects included assisting Nigerian government officials to realize the benefits GIS has to offer not only regional governments, but also communities and businesses as well.

Soon, I hope to return to Africa to continue working with the people whose only hope is to bring a better life to their country.

Scott F. Snider, MA ’04
I am in my fifth year with the Knox County Map Department in Mt. Vernon, Ohio. The last two of which I have served as GIS supervisor. As supervisor I am in charge of a two-person staff and oversee daily operations of the Department. I also perform all GIS analyses for the county and prepare custom maps for other county entities as well as the general public. I received my GISP certification from the GIS Certification Institute in the fall of 2008, which is based on a combination of professional experience, education, and contribution to the profession. I have also been elected as the vice chair of the Ohio Chapter of URSIA and serve as the president of the Howard Township Zoning Commission. I also got married in March of this year.

Ashley Dailey, BS ’05, is currently working at a GIS company called Technigraphics, Inc. in Wooster, OH. She is a team leader for other GIS technicians. Technigraphics is always looking for new technicians with geography backgrounds, so if anyone is interested please go to www.tgstech.com, click on company, and then employment to see what positions we currently have open. Carrie Runser-Turner (MA ’05) is a regional planner and rural transportation coordinator at Land-of-Sky Regional Council in Asheville, NC. Carrie was the lead planner on the Madison County Recreational Facilities mapping project, which received the 2007 Excellence in Regional Transportation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations. She and her husband, Brian Turner, became proud parents to their first child, a daughter named Isadora Marie, on August 4, 2007.

Patrick R. Denbow, BS '05. In April of 2006, I was hired by the Muskingum County GIS Department in Zanesville, OH as a GIS Analyst. In early 2008, I was appointed to serve as the assistant director of the Muskingum County Planning Commission. I held this post in addition to my GIS position. In late September of 2008 I left my two positions with Muskingum County to become the city planner and zoning administrator for the City of Zanesville, Ohio. In this role, I serve as administrator to four city boards, (Board of Zoning Appeals, Design Review Board, Downtown Design Review Board, and Planning Commission), as well as administering the Planning and Zoning Code. On a personal note, in July of 2008 I got married to Kelly Richardson (BS '05) who is a math teacher at West Muskingum High School in Zanesville.

Eva Montgomery, BS ’05
After leaving Athens, I spent two years as a weather observer at Cleveland Hopkins Airport and one year at Port Columbus Airport. While working at both airports I began graduate school at The Ohio State University. I graduated in December 2007 with a Master in Atmospheric Sciences. Three months later, I was offered a position with Gamesa Energy U.S.A. as a wind resource engineer. For the last year and a half, I have been researching new sites for future wind farms as well as performing wind resource studies. My responsibilities also include designing layouts for Wind Farms across the U.S.

Nicole (Baylor) Parrish, BS, ‘05
After graduating in 2005 I worked in the Cart Center under Dr. Bloemer until August 2005 when I was picked up by Woolpert, Inc. in Dayton, OH and have been with the company ever since. I first began as a Photogrammetric Technician where I worked with digital and some film orthoimagery. In 2007 I decided to take a position as a GIS Technician within the company where I briefly helped with utility work. That same year I moved into our classified National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) group where I work as a Geospatial Intelligence Analyst (GEOINT Analyst). We produce intelligence products that are high resolution vector data for NGA both in 2D and 3D environments.

Alongside of my Woolpert career I have been teaching for various colleges. My first teaching experience was with Clark State Community College here in the Dayton area where I taught Introduction to Cartography and Geospatial Sciences. I introduced the students to the geospatial field, along with the basics of ArcGIS. After one quarter I decided to return to school for my Masters and was unable to continue teaching for Clark State, but do sit on their Geospatial Technology Advisory Board. Currently I am a Consultant/Adjunct for the Advanced Technical Intelligence Center for Human Capital Development (ATIC). ATIC is an independent, not-for-profit corporation established in 2006 to help fill critical human capital and technological shortfalls within the U.S. Intelligence Community and related industries. There I instruct a 2-day GIS Analysis course for their Analyst Boot Camp which is a 10-week course held every quarter. ATIC recently opened a 2nd location in Charlottesville, VA at Piedmont Community College where I am travelling to as well for my 2-day course. Also this year, I instructed a 1-day course on GIS for Sinclair Community College's Unmanned Aerial Systems Training program and currently sit on their UAS Committee.

Outside of my career I have been going back to school. I recently completed my Master of Science in Criminal Justice with a concentration in Crime Analysis from Tiffin University in August 2011. I have also obtained a Wide Area Airborne Surveillance (WAAS) and Analysis Certificate from ATIC and am currently working on my Certificate in Advance Technical Intelligence (ATI) from ATIC which focuses on: Remote Sensing, Spectral Sensing, MASINT, Radar for MASINT, and Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR). Through all of my education, work, and volunteer experience I am happy to say I was able to obtain my GISP this year. Overall, 2011 has been a very busy yet successful year for me!

On a personal note, I was married in 2009 and had our first son in 2009 as well. My husband is a Police Officer for Perry Twp PD and is hoping to move onto Dayton PD in the next few months. I have spent some time volunteering with Dayton PD and Perry Twp PD too. I was with Dayton PD for 5 month earlier this year where I assisted the Special Projects Administrator and Senior Crime Analyst on various projects, such as mapping the new patrol districts. In correlation with the Departments Community Initiative to Reduce Gun Violence (CIRGV), I researched homicides and the impact of gun violence in the City of Dayton. I continue to build my relationship with Dayton PD and have since helped ATIC and Dayton PD work together on various Intel work. At Perry Twp PD I was an Ambassador for a few months where I volunteer my services to the community while learning skills from the Perry Township Police Department on how to protect the public. I assist the commissioned officers with such things as: crime prevention and community outreach projects; non-enforcement police department operations; ride-a-longs with uniform patrol officers; all while learning about Perry Township in general and operations of the police department specifically.

Jennifer Rich, BS ’05
I am currently working for The Nature Conservancy in Virginia as the state’s volunteer coordinator. I manage over 700 active volunteers and supervise stewardship projects such as trail maintenance, invasive species removal, and seagrass restoration. I also participate on the prescribed burn team. If you are in Virginia and interested in volunteering, don’t hesitate to contact me at jrich@tnc.org.

Matt Peters, BS '05
Since leaving OU, I have participated in an SCA internship ('05-'06) collecting field data for the LANDFIRE project in CA, MT, and WA. After which I began to work for the US Forest Service in Delaware, OH as a GIS contractor. Our main research is the potential impact of climate change on bird and tree species of the eastern U.S. (www.nrs.fs.fed.us/atlas). I have also contributed to a Risk map of Emerald Ash Borer in OH and MI. Currently, I am pursuing a Masters in Applied Biological Sciences at Arizona State University, while continuing my contract with the USFS. Research for my thesis involves modeling Ponderosa Pine habitat in AZ from 1890 to present and to 2100, exploring possible shifts in the distribution. I contribute most of my success to the Faculty of the Department and the quality of the GIS program.

Mike Ferian, BS '06, MA '08
Following graduation in 2006, I decided to continue my studies in the field of Geography-Meteorology at OU, assuming the role of associate director of Scalia Lab. Upon finishing my thesis, pertaining to global temperature increase and its impact on lake-effect snowfall, I received an MA in Geography in the fall of 2008. In November of 2008, I accepted a job with a renewable energy consultancy, Garrad Hassan, and relocated to San Diego. I currently serve as a meteorologist in the short-term wind energy forecasting arena.

Meghan McGuire, BA ’06
Set off her geography career with an GIS internship with Pioneer Rural Electric in Piqua, Ohio. This experience was followed by another internship with National Geographic Digital Media (Web page). Specifically, I made the maps for the black rhinoceros, emperor penguin, koala, lion, orangutan, tiger, wharthog, eagle, gray wolf. After a brief stint with Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) as a GIS analyst and an administrative assistant position with the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, Meghan returned to Pioneer Electric to serve as the current energy advisor.

Jessica Meyer, BS ’06
After graduation, I worked for Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Education Center at Cuyahoga Valley National Park as a field instructor intern teaching environmental education to mostly children ages 4–14. Currently, I am in the Peace Corps Masters International program as part of my Master in Rural Development from University of Alaska–Fairbanks. I have been in the Republic of Macedonia since the end of September 2008 and my service will go through fall of 2010. My thesis will be about solid waste management (garbage, recycling, and composting) in rural areas and will include a lot of GIS. I hope to graduate in Spring 2011 and eventually go on to pursue my doctorate in geography.

Sagar R. Mysorekar, MA ’06
I started working for the Nature Conservancy in 2005 when I joined as GIS intern at the Arkansas Field Office (ARFO). I was then offered the GIS specialist position at ARFO where I primarily worked to develop ArcSDE, ArcGIS Server and ArcIMS systems, and provide IT support for the Arkansas Chapter.

I joined Great Lakes project team in mid-September 2008 as a GIS manager in Chicago. I am currently working on mapping and analyzing aquatic invasive species from the Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio region and am actively involved in database development, spatial analysis, and Web GIS development to support various Great Lakes conservation projects. My wife, Manasi, is completing her Master of Landscape Architecture from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. You can reach me at smysorekar@gmail.com.

Colin Bryant, BS '07
I am currently a GIS Technical Lead working for CAE, USA in Orlando, FL and have been in this position since February 2010. Our work includes GIS data manipulation and creation in order to build simulation databases for the US Army. We combine imagery, elevation, vector, and raster data into real world simulation environments. These simulation environments are training our soldiers for aircraft, artillery, infantry, and IED detection. Before this, I worked at Harris Corporation in Melbourne, FL upon graduation doing Imagery Processing and Analysis on a contract from the NGA.

My newest venture is a consulting practice that specializes in site selection for growing small to medium size firms. We can analyze any location at the local, state, or even federal level relative to the customer's needs. We have access to several detailed demographic datasets and can help businesses looking to expand a detailed set of locations to choose. You can locate us on the web at http://www.whereconsulting.com . If you have any questions feel free to contact me anytime at whereconsulting@gmail.com.

Curtis Carman, BS ’07
In June, he will be moving to Estes Park, CO to begin work in Rocky Mountain National Park as an Olson fellow.

Mike Fein, BS ’07
Since August 2007, he has been and is currently working for Garmin International (Garmin’s worldwide headquarters) in Olathe, KS which is located in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. He is a cartography technician in the Recreational Cartography Group working mainly with topographic and hydrographic data that goes into Garmin’s mapping handheld GPS units.

Michael Gregorio, MA ’08
I have moved to Washington, D.C. and am a geographer working for the U.S. Census Bureau in the Public Information Office, Media Relations Branch. I create maps for the upcoming 2010 Decennial Census and population profiles for natural disasters.

I presented my thesis, “Effects of Channelization at Athens, Ohio, on the Downstream Planform of the Hocking River” at the 2009 Association of American Geographers Meeting in Las Vegas along with Dr. Dorothy Sack.

Dan Laubenthal, BS ’08
Following graduation, I relocated to Chicago and have been working at Sargent & Lundy—an engineering firm specializing in consulting, engineering, design, and analysis for electric power generation and power delivery projects worldwide. My position is in permitting and licensing and I enjoy the opportunity to work on everything from wind turbine farms to nuclear power plant applications.

Kenny Ling, MA ’08
I recently started working at ESRI in Redlands, California, joining other OU Geography grads–KT Koerner (BA, 07?) and Chris Tartoni (MA, 08). I work as a cartographic product engineer in the Mapping Center team (mappingcenter.esri.com/), helping with the development and delivery of cartographic techniques, especially with online mapping. In the few months I have been at ESRI, I have already had the chance to design numerous online mapping tools with the ArcGIS Javascript API. I love what I do and hope to see more OU folks over here!

Sam Pepple, BS ’08
After graduating in June 2008 and subsequently enjoying the summer riding my bicycle with two great friends from Athens to the Pacific Ocean (bikists.blogspot.com), I began an internship at the National Geographic Society in the Cartographic Division. Upon completion of the internship in December I was given a job as a production cartographer. I am currently working with Chief Cartographer Allen Carroll on the Thematic Section of the 9th Edition of the World Atlas, which should go to press late summer of 2010. Although I can’t realistically take the summer off again for a long bike ride, I do plan on taking a few weeks to either do a tour around Lake Michigan with my dad, or venture south to Colombia with some friends from Athens.

Michelle Corrigan, MA '10
I recently returned from Edinburgh, Scotland, where I was Geoff Buckey's teaching assistant for Edinburgh: City & Environment. It was a great experience and I hope to return with a new group of students next summer. I currently work as an AmeriCorps/ComCorps Service Member for Live Healthy Appalachia, an Athens-based organization working to improve the health and wellness of Appalachia. I serve as the Program Coordinator and implement a hands-on cooking and nutrition curriculum in 20 2nd and 3rd grade classrooms throughout Athens County. The ComCorps program is a great start for those interested in health education, with a strong focus on obesity prevention.

Erin Pierce, MA ‘10
I'm currently an AmeriCorps VISTA with the Greenway through the Appalachian Coal Country Team.  A great program that I am happy to discuss with interested undergrads and grads!

Colby Tisdale, BS ’10
I'm doing well. I found a job with a company called Arbor Metrics Solutions. I work for a utility company in northwest Indiana planning vegetation management for overhead power lines. I use a GIS program to geographically place permits and make a digital plan of the tree work that needs to be done around power lines for reliability and safety.  If there are any OU Geography students who might be interested in this line of work, I can give them some more information or direct them towards possible job openings.