Research Team Members: Non-Faculty
Research Team Members: Staff
Aparna Bamzai
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Working on South Central Climate Science Center initiatives in conjunction with OK NSF EPSCoR.
Email: aparna@ou.edu
Austin Boardman
Dept. of Biological Science, University of Tulsa
Supervisor: Dr. Ron Bonett
Research Focus: Researching variable life histories in the Oklahoma salamander.
Email: austinboardman@gmail.com
Nina Carlson
Center for Risk and Crisis Management and the Center for Energy, Security and Society, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Hank Jenkins-Smith
Research Focus: Building the MSIS-Net survey instrument and performing related project tasks, including budget and oversight, for the Center for Risk and Crisis Management.
Email: ninacarlson@ou.edu
Jinwei Dong
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Collecting and producing remote sensing related products, especially land cover- and land use change data (e.g., forest, water body, urbanization, etc.).
Email: jinwei.dong@ou.edu
Kathryn Jeane Hardy
Center for Risk and Crisis Management, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Coordinating M-SISNet survey respondent (post-survey) mailings.
Email: jeanehardy@ou.edu
Matthew Henderson
Center for Risk and Crisis Management, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Programming the M-SISNet survey instrument each quarter; designing and maintaining the administrative platform for the M-SISNet.
Email: matthew@matthew-henderson.com
Xiamoning Hu
School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Generating a high-resolution regional climate simulation, with focus on the Great Plains; diagnosing the model precipitation bias, particularly in terms of the location of precipitation.
Email: xhu@ou.edu
Evan Linde
Dept. of Information Technology and Informatics, Oklahoma State University
Supervisor: Dr. Dana Brunson
Research Focus: Providing cyberinfrastructure resources, training, and expertise; working directly with researchers to evaluate computing needs, and deploy environments to meet them.
Email: elinde@okstate.edu
Kim Merryman
South Central Climate Science Center, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Facilitating planning and organization of outreach initiatives, including grant-writing workshops and presentations for Native American tribes in our region and New Mexico.
Email: kmerryman@ou.edu
Joe Ripberger
Center for Risk and Crisis Management, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Collecting, analyzing, and distributing data from the Meso-scale Integrated Socio-geographic Network (M-SISNet).
Email: jtr@ou.edu
Mark Stacy
Dept. of Information Technology and Informatics, University of Oklahoma
Supervisor: Dr. Henry Neeman
Research Focus: Providing mentorship and education with OneOCII and OSU Informatics Dept.; collaborating with OU Supercomputing Center for Education & Research and the EPSCoR climate researchers to expand storage capacity for vital climate research datasets.
Email: markstacy@ou.edu
Elaine Stebler
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Supervisor: Dr. Chris Zou
Research Focus: Maintaining and retrofitting existing weirs across the state-wide microcatchment network; collecting and analyzing meteorological and discharge data.
Email: elaine.stebler@okstate.edu
April Taylor
South Central Climate Science Center, Chickasaw Nation
Supervisor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Assisting with and participating in outreach, including the Climate Science Grant Writing Workshops for Tribal Professionals, Tribal College Conference Series on Climate Change, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Jones Academy STEM camp, and developing a guidebook for Working in Indian Country.
Email: april.taylor@chickasaw.net
Research Team Members: Post-Doctoral Fellows
Timothy Clay
Dept. of Biological Science, University of Tulsa
Mentor: Dr. Ron Bonett
Research Focus: Examining the biodiversity of Oklahoma wildlife using a GIS approach; and teaching a landscape ecology/GIS undergraduate and graduate course.
Email: timothy-clay@utulsa.edu
Gehendra Kharel
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Mentor: Dr. Chris Zou
Research Focus: Developing integrated modeling efforts of coupled nature-human systems under a changing climate, focusing primarily in Cimarron River Watershed.
Email: gehendra.kharel@okstate.edu
Ron Miller
Dept. of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Oklahoma State University
Mentor: Dr. Ray Huhnke
Research Focus: Developing decision tools related to drought-influenced stream flows.
Email: ron.miller@okstate.edu
Esther Mullens
South Central Climate Science Center, University of Oklahoma
Mentor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Developing datasets for freezing precipitation; participating in outreach, including hosting a booth at the EPSCoR Women in Science Conference.
Email: esther.white@ou.edu
Narayan Nyaupane
Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Noble Research Institute
Mentor: Dr. Jon Biermacher
Research Focus: Performing an economic evaluation of forage-based beef cattle production systems in the Southern Plains with respect to climate change.
Email: npnyaupane@noble.org
Lei Qiao
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Mentor: Dr. Chris Zou
Research Focus: Conducting climate change impact studies and eco-hydrological modeling.
Email: lei.qiao@okstate.edu
Derek Rosendahl
South Central Climate Science Center, University of Oklahoma
Mentor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Assessing uncertainties in the Global Climate Model (GCM) future climate change projections to inform regional climate modeling and local/regional impacts research; managing climate data for EPSCoR and other researchers across the South-Central US.
Email: drose@ou.edu
Rheinhardt Scholtz
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Mentor: Dr. Sam Fuhlendorf
Research Focus: Collaborating with various institutions regarding woody encroachment and fire behavior in the Great Plains.
Email: r.scholtz@okstate.edu
Evan Tanner
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Mentor: Dr. Sam Fuhlendorf
Research Focus: Investigating temperature between Oklahoma Mesonet stations and the various roles temperature plays in the ecological observatory.
Email: evan.tanner@okstate.edu
Tony VanWinkle
Dept. of Anthropology, University of Oklahoma
Mentor: Dr. Jack Friedman
Research Focus: Conducting community-based ethnographic fieldwork in Caddo County.
Email: tvanwin1@ou.edu
Research Team Members: Graduate Students
Rejen Bajgain
Dept. of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Assisting in data collection, data analysis and interpretation, instrumentation and maintenance of the Eddy Covariance Tower.
Email: rajen@ou.edu
Claude Buerger
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Jennifer Koch
Research Focus: Developing a land-use and land-cover change model for Oklahoma.
Email: claude.l.buerger-iv@ou.edu
Jingnuo Dong
Dept. of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Tyson Ochsner
Research Focus: Conducting cosmic-ray rover experiments; working on soil moisture mapping.
Email: geano.dong@okstate.edu
Ling Du
Dept. of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Yiqi Luo
Research Focus: Studying forest carbon under extreme conditions through a modeling approach.
Email: lingdu@ou.edu
Jonathan Giddens
Dept. of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Heather McCarthy
Research Focus: Obtaining field measurements, and analyzing and logging the data; training and supervising others in the field.
Email: jongiddens@ou.edu
Rachel Gurney
Dept. of Sociology, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Duane Gill
Research Focus: Conducting and analyzing interviews to explore the social dimensions underlying Oklahoma's vulnerability and resiliency to extreme weather and environmental events.
Email: rgurney@okstate.edu
Xijia Han
Dept. of Statistics, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Ye Liang
Research Focus: Modeling soil moisture in Oklahoma using Mesonet data by building a spatial-temporal model and applying Bayesian technique.
Email: henry.han@okstate.edu
Toni Klemm
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Renee McPherson
Research Focus: Studying agricultural decision-making to improve seasonal climate forecasts for winter wheat producers in the U.S. winter wheat belt (TX, OK, KS, CO).
Email: toni@ou.edu
Chih-Yu Lai
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Performing GIS spatial interpolation on M-SISNet survey instrument results and other related projects.
Email: cylai@ou.edu
Shuang Ma
Dept. of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Yiqi Luo
Research Focus: Measuring a warming site's below- and above-ground biomass for drought experiments; pretreatment of a new drought experiment.
Email: mashuang@ou.edu
Chloe Magee
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Conducting GIS mapping projects using M-SISNet data; developing and maintaining M-SISNet codebooks; testing survey instruments.
Email: chloe.magee@ou.edu
Hayden Mahan
School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Investigating energy and water fluxes in the grasslands; conducting research at eddy flux tower sites in El Reno and Marena, Oklahoma, and at the Kessler Atmospheric and Ecological Field Station.
Email: haydenmahan@gmail.com
Rashmi Mohanty
Dept. of Biological Science, University of Tulsa
Advisor: Dr. Ron Bonett
Research Focus: Modeling habitat suitability of the Juniperus species under future climate scenarios.
Email: rashmiprava-mohanty@utulsa.edu
Jason Pudlo
Dept. of Political Science, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Carol Silva
Research Focus: Conducting M-SISNet data analysis, particularly as it relates to religion/religiosity and perceptions about climate.
Email: jpudlo@ou.edu
Renato Rahal
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Chris Zou
Research Focus: Studying streamflow responses to climate variability and land management across a precipitation gradient in Oklahoma.
Email: renatom@okstate.edu
Grant Samms
Dept. of Sociology, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Duane Gill
Research Focus: Working to direct research efforts in Woodward, Oklahoma.
Email: grant.samms@okstate.edu
Bharat Sharma Acharya
Dept. of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Chris Zou
Email: bharas@ostatemail.okstate.edu
Adam Straub
Dept. of Sociology, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Duane Gill
Research Focus: Conducting and analyzing interviews to explore the social dimensions underlying Oklahoma's vulnerability and resiliency to extreme weather and environmental events.
Email: amstrau@ostatemail.okstate.edu
Ashley Unger
Dept. of Rangeland Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University
Advisor: Dr. Sam Fuhlendorf
Research Focus: Performing sound ecology research; establishing sound instrumentation sites.
Email: ashley.unger@okstate.edu
Xiaocui Wu
Center for Spatial Analysis, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Investigating carbon fluxes from various terrestrial ecosystems through satellite-based modeling.
Email: xiaocui.wu@ou.edu
Yao Zhang
Center for Spatial Analysis, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Developing gross primary production and vegetation photosynthesis models; studying the response of ecosystems to drought.
Email: yaozhang@ou.edu
Yuting Zhou
Dept. of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Xiangming Xiao
Research Focus: Maintaining El Reno flux towers; developing and submitting papers on drought mapping and baling effects in the tall-grass region of the Southern Great Plains.
Email: zhouyuting@ou.edu
Jesus Zubillaga
Dept. of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma
Advisor: Dr. Jadwiga Ziolkowska
Research Focus: Performing literature research and prep work for an environmental information contingent valuation survey.
Email: j.zubillaga15@ou.edu
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For more information about the OK NSF EPSCoR research project visit http://www.okepscor.org/research/climate-variability-research.