What’s your mission in academia?
My mission is to make a positive impact on the life of my students and the environment. 

What’s in your job description?
I am a contaminant hydrogeologist. Basically, I research pollution that is in groundwater.

How did you become interested in your subject area?
I have always been interested in the environment and how to make the world a better place to live. When I finished my bachelor’s degree, I had the opportunity to go to Canada to do field research and that is where I fell in love with the science of contaminant hydrogeology. 
 
What do students learn from you?
I hope they learn how they can make a positive impact on the environment.

What kinds of things do your graduates do? 
Many of them find jobs in environmental consulting firms or the U.S. Geological Survey. Others go on to graduate school.

What is your favorite aspect of your subject?
I love doing field work and being outside.

What most pleases you about society today? What most concerns you?
There seems to be an increased awareness of environmental issues, especially related to global warming. We are only 6 percent of the world’s population but consume over 25 percent of its resources. We have the potential to make a positive impact on the world if we choose to take that route.

What’s your current research?
The main focus of my research is on the fate and transport of containments in the subsurface. I examine environmental factors that influence their transport, which can include the geology, microbiology or chemistry of a site. Currently my students and I are working on projects that span from Illinois to Antarctica.

What’s a good book you recently read? 
“Collapsed,” by Jared Diamond. I was reading the section on Mayan society when I was working in the Yucatan last year.

Where do you go in DeKalb for a good meal?
The Thai Pavilion and O’Leary’s.

Why did you choose your first college/university? 
It was in-state but still a 3-hour drive from my parents.

Who was your favorite professor?
Dr. Charles Gerba gave me my start in environmental sciences. He saw an average student that messed up at the beginning of her undergraduate career and gave her a chance. I try to do the same for my students.  Sometimes the best students have made some mistakes but have grown from the situation.

Why should students come to NIU? 
NIU offers a multitude of experiences and offers great diversity. Even in a small department like Geology, we offer several opportunities for research, travel and study.

What’s your best advice to students who want to succeed? 
Honestly, SLEEP! I know that my mind functions best when I have a good night’s sleep. Students think that by staying up all night before a test they can cram more information into their brains. However, they can’t function properly the next day and miss simple questions.

If you weren’t teaching, what would you be doing? 
I would be still working on cleaning up the environment by working in an environmental consulting firm.

What would your tombstone read? 
It does not matter what it says but what rock it is made out of.

Photos by Scott Walstrom, NIU Media Services

Department: Geology and Environmental Geosciences

Hometowns: Michigan and Arizona.

My degrees: Ph.D. in Geology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; M.S. in Soil, Water and Environmental Sciences, University of Arizona; B.S. in Microbiology, University of Arizona

Arrived at NIU: January 2001

I teach: Environmental Geology, Contaminant Hydrogeology and Geomicrobiology