Carolyn Mahan’s research interests include the study of biodiversity in threatened
ecosystems, the effects of human-modified landscapes on wildlife, and behavioral
ecology of sciurids. Dr. Mahan teaches introductory biology, environmental studies,
field ecology, and evolution.

Ed Levri is broadly interested in evolutionary ecology, and his research has primarily focused on
parasitism, predation, and behavior of a New Zealand snail and the evolution drugresistance
in malaria. Dr. Levri teaches introductory biology, invertebrate zoology,
evolution, aquatic ecology and environmental studies.

Ian Marshall is the author of "Story Line: Exploring the Literature of the Appalachian Trail," "Peak Experiences: Walking Meditations on Literature, Nature, and Need," "Walden by Haiku," and articles on writers as diverse as Henry Thoreau and Dr. Seuss. His specialties are American nature writing and ecocriticism. He received his B.A. and M.A. from West Chester University, PA (1977, 1983), and his Ph.D. from the University of Delaware (1988).

Todd Davis, winner of the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, teaches creative writing, environmental studies, and American literature at Penn State University’s Altoona College. His poems have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and have appeared in such journals and magazines as "Shenandoah", "The North American Review", "Iowa Review", "Indiana Review", "Gettysburg Review", "The Christian Science Monitor", "5 AM", "West Branch", "River Styx", "Arts & Letters", "Quarterly West", "Green Mountains Review", "Poetry East", "Orion", "Epoch", "Rattle", "Nebraska Review", "and Image." He is the author of three books of poetry - "The Least of These" (Michigan State University Press, 2010), "Some Heaven" (Michigan State University Press, 2007) and "Ripe" (Bottom Dog Press, 2002) - one chapbook, "Household of Water, Moon, and Snow: The Thoreau Poems" (Seven Kitchens Press, 2010), and co-editor of the anthology, "Making Poems: 40 Poems with Commentary by the Poets" (State University of New York Press, 2010). His poems have been featured on the radio by Garrison Keillor on "The Writer’s Almanac" and by Marion Roach on "The Naturalist’s Datebook," as well as by Ted Kooser in his syndicated newspaper column "American Life in Poetry." In addition to his creative work, Davis is the author or editor of six scholarly books, including "Kurt Vonnegut’s Crusade, or How a Postmodern Harlequin Preached a New Kind of Humanism" (State University of New York Press, 2006) and "Mapping the Ethical Turn: A Reader in Ethics, Culture, and Literary Theory" (University Press of Virginia, 2001).

James Winsor’s research interests are in plant reproductive ecology. He has worked
extensively on the genetic and environmental factors affecting pollen performance. Dr.
Winsor teaches introductory biology, general botany, ecology, and economic botany.

Michael Gannon’s interests and research are in tropical biodiversity and the ecology of temperate and tropical bat species. His studies have taken him from Pennsylvania to the Caribbean. He teaches general biology, function and development of organisms, and mammalogy.

Nicholas Rowland got his Ph.D. from Indiana University in Bloomington, IN, Department of Sociology in the Sociology of Technology with a minor study in Cultural Studies. He joined the faculty of Penn State Altoona in Fall 2007 as an Assistant Professor of Sociology. He teaches 9 or more contact hours per semester and conducts research year-round. His teaching responsibilities include: SOC 001 (Introductory Sociology), SOC 005 (Social Problems), SOC 424 (Social Change), and STS 200 (Contemporary Topics in Science, Technology, and Society). Each spring he also team teaches a core course in Environmental Studies (ENVST 200) and has recently contributed to an innovative new course on preparing interns for internships (INTSP 370). In addition, Dr. Rowland routinely offers independent study credit (SOC 296 or SOC 496) to students serving as research or teaching assistants or those interested in conducting their own research projects.

Dr. Rowland contributes to the Penn State Altoona community in a number of ways: his student-centered courses advance one of the college’s most popular minor studies, the sociology minor; for the past two years Dr. Rowland has participated in interdisciplinary teaching with colleagues in Environmental Studies; he oversees a growing handful of interns in collaboration with Tom Shaffer; he works closely with undergraduates outside of the classroom, presenting with them at conferences, aiding them in preparation for the Penn State Altoona Undergraduate Research Fair, editing and writing professional manuscripts with them, and conducting research with them; he continues to prepare manuscripts for publication and has remained active with regard to the regular delivery of conference presentations; and, over the last two years, Dr. Rowland’s service to the college and broader university has been enhanced. Above all, he sees himself as a “teacher-scholar” and shares the view that teaching, research, and service, when carefully coupled, are synergistic endeavors.

Lisa Emili, assistant professor of geosciences,
earned her doctorate in the Department of Geography
at McMaster University. She is currently
completing a graduate certificate in GIS at Northern
Illinois University. Her research interests include
hydrology and groundwater resources. Her current
research focuses on the use of topographic indices
for the integration of spatial data on soil and vegetation
dynamics with hydrochemical data.

Jim Julian's current research in amphibian and wetland ecology has focused on the use
of seasonal, isolated wetlands by amphibians, as well as the detection of these habitats
using an airplane-borne sensor called LiDAR. Dr. Julian teaches introductory biology,
environmental science for non-majors, and an upper-level course in conservation
biology.