Dear geographers, and friends and families,
As the incoming interim chair, I want to thank Darla Munroe for her service to the department as chair over the past several years; and more than that, for her many contributions to our family since she started here in 2004. I must say that – as a dedicated Blue Jackets fan – I’m not entirely sure why anyone in their right mind would up and move to Bruins territory? Notwithstanding, we wish Darla the best of luck on her new adventure and look forward to seeing her at professional events in the future!
I want to welcome our incoming 2022 cohort of undergraduate and graduate students. You are joining a vibrant community of researchers, and we look forward to working with you! I also want to say congratulations to those students – undergraduate and graduate – who earned their degrees over the past year. Having been at Ohio State since 2005, I can honestly say that the students who have maintained focus throughout the pandemic deserve our greatest respect. It hasn’t been a walk in the park for any of us, but it certainly hasn’t been easy for our students.
Despite Darla’s departure, and my new role in the department, it’s not all change around here. Ningchuan Xiao will continue to lead the Graduate Studies Committee; Nancy Ettlinger will continue to lead the Undergraduate Studies Committee; and Kendra McSweeney will continue to lead our Personnel Committee. I am grateful to be able to work with such a talented and supportive leadership team. It takes a village – including all my other faculty colleagues that I don’t have the space to mention here.
And yet some things are changing. This year we welcome associate professor Jana Houser to our faculty. Jana is coming to us from Ohio University. Her work on tornado evolution, not to mention storm-chasing skills, is a welcome addition to our ranks of climate-related, physical geography, and atmospheric science faculty. But that’s not it. Tammy Parece is joining us from Colorado as a senior lecturer, and Chayanika Singh is joining us from Texas as a lecturer. Tammy and Chayanika are taking up key teaching positions in support of our energetic GIScience curriculum; we are thrilled to have them here. Apparently, it’s not only UCLA and USC who want into the Big10!
I also want to celebrate and recognize our staff, without whom I doubt anything would get done – our academic advisors, Ali Grandey and Jocelyn Nevel, who steer our undergraduates through Ohio State’s curricular labyrinth with compassion and skill; Brett Gregory, our fiscal guru, who pays the bills and makes sure the lights are on (except when we’re trying to reduce our carbon use); Jens Blegvad, our systems manager and tech whizz, who never loses his cool; and Kim Miller, our office associate and frontline firefighter for literally everything and everyone! I am also very excited to welcome Michelle Hooper, our new GIS administrator; Lyjah Williams, our new associate fiscal officer; and, Joslyn Branham, who is joining us as our new graduate program coordinator. We are a growing family!
I am thrilled to have the opportunity to help lead the department this year. It has been a wonderful home for me since I started my career, and I intend to do everything I can to make it even better.
Go Bucks,
Mat Coleman
August 2022
