Geoscience Education Research Division Officers

President - Larry Collins

Dr. Larry Collins is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Director of the Environmental Education Center at Longwood University. His research interests are primarily focused on climate change acceptance and perception of climate change risk. Larry has also served as Past Chair of the Geoscience Education Division for the Geological Society of America and has had several other positions with GSA and NAGT. He also serves as a Geosciences Division Representative for the Council on Undergraduate Research.

Vice President - Zo Kreager

Dr. Zo Kreager is an Assistant Professor of Applied Physical Science at Elgin Community College.

Treasurer - Jessica Duke

Jessica Duke is originally from Nashville, TN and received her B.S. in Biology from Middle Tennessee State University before pursuing her M.S. in Biology from Western Carolina University, which she completed in 2014. Her research at WCU focused on amphibian ecology and conservation. Jessica completed her PhD in Biology Education at the University of Northern Colorado in 2024. Her dissertation studies climate change education, specifically researching undergraduate student perceptions of climate change. Her research examines the ability of undergraduate biology students to recognize the localized effects of climate change. Currently, Jessica is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Northern Colorado working on an NSF funded, transdisciplinary study examining undergraduate science students' acceptance of climate change. While not teaching or doing research, Jessica enjoys trail-running, paddle boarding, and hiking/camping in the beautiful mountains of Colorado with her husband, Cameron, and poodle, Nelson. Read more on Jessica's website.

Interest in NAGT: I am excited for the opportunity to serve as Treasurer for NAGT. While I am not a geoscientist, my research is transdisciplinary and seeks to better understand how undergraduate science students' perceive climate change. I am excited to meet new people in the field and learn from you all, along with supporting NAGT's mission to improve teaching, learning, and research in the field!

Secretary - Katie Boyd

Kathryn (Katie) Boyd is an Education and Outreach Associate at CIRES. She is the program manager for a climate change education project and an evaluator for multiple CIRES education projects. She conducts research in environmental education related to these roles. She holds two MS degrees in Atmospheric Science and in Education/Ecology. Her research interests include science education, outreach, and communication, specifically understanding how to build bridges between the scientific community and society through educational work.

Media Director - Casey Davenport

Dr. Casey Davenport is an Associate Professor of Meteorology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She conducts research in two broad themes, including the science of severe thunderstorms as well as atmospheric science education. Her current education research explores the use of active learning in atmospheric science classrooms, pedagogical approaches of implementing meteorological case studies, and also identifying how the undergraduate meteorology curriculum contributes to the growth of spatial thinking skills. Dr. Davenport has also led the development of an introductory meteorology concept inventory and evaluated the effectiveness of using worked examples and other innovative pedagogies to teach atmospheric dynamics. Her severe weather research seeks to understand the role of temporal and spatial environmental variability experienced over the lifetime of a storm and how it connects to changes in storm lifetime, intensity, and production of storm hazards such as hail and tornadoes.

Graduate Student Liaison - Nina Morris

Nina Morris currently works as a Graduate Student Instructor at the Mallinson Institute for Science Education, Western Michigan University.

Past President - Caitlin Callahan

Dr. Caitlin Callahan is an Associate Professor of Geology at Grand Valley State University.

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