Affiliates

A complete listing of ISC affiliates.

Shane Allan

Shane Allan

M.S. Student
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Allan is investigating how prescribed burns affect the spread of laurel wilt, an invasive insect-vectored fungal disease caused by Harringtonia lauricola.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Restoration ecology
Olivia Andrews - Entomology Ph.D. Student

Olivia Andrews

Ph.D. Student
Department of Entomology

Andrews’ research focuses on the biological control of Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA). She is specifically establishing populations and studying the biology of two specialist predators of HWA, Leucotaraxis argenticollis and Leucotaraxis piniperda, in the eastern United States.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention & eradication
Dr. Brian Badgley

Dr. Brian Badgley

Associate Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Badgley and his lab conduct research in environmental microbiology with a particular focus on how populations and communities of microorganisms impact water and soil quality.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
  • Restoration ecology
Dr. Jacob Barney

Dr. Jacob Barney

ISC Director and Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Barney’s research is broadly focused on the causes, consequences, epidemiology, management, and policy of invasive plant species.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Restoration ecology
  • Social science, economics, & policy
Dr. Shannon Bell

Dr. Shannon Bell

Professor
Department of Sociology

Dr. Bell is an environmental sociologist whose research has primarily focused on environmental and climate (in)justice in fossil-fuel extraction communities; however, her emerging areas of interest are focused on community-based restoration strategies on public and community-owned forest lands in Appalachia, including both invasive exotic plant species removal and the cultivation of native forest medicinal herbs and forest foods.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Restoration ecology
  • Social science, economics, & policy

Camille Block

Master’s Student
Department of Entomology

Block uses the common bed bug (Cimex lectularius), an invasive urban pest, to study urban evolutionary processes. Such processes include invasion dynamics, the genomics of establishment, and patterns of gene flow and genetic structure.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure

Dr. Warren Booth

Associate Professor
Department of Entomology

Dr. Booth’s research explores how organisms adapt and evolve within urban environments, using invasive indoor urban pest insects (most notably bed bugs) as model systems of study.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. Bryan Brown

Dr. Bryan Brown

Associate Professor
Department of Biological Sciences

Dr. Brown’s research focuses on aquatic ecology, particularly community assembly, symbioses, and metacommunity theory.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. Jamie Bucholz

Dr. Jamie Bucholz

Postdoctoral Researcher
Department of Biological Sciences

Dr. Bucholz’s work is focused on the ecology and population genomics of both native and invasive freshwater bivalve species.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. Kelly Cobourn

Dr. Kelly Cobourn

Associate Professor
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

 Dr. Cobourn’s research involves integrating biological models of pest dynamics with economic models of human decision making to understand what factors drive the spread of invasive species and what policy instruments effectively and efficiently slow or halt spread.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Economics & policy
  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
Dr. Jessica Cunningham

Dr. Jessica Cunningham

Research Scientist
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute | Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics

Dr. Cunningham’s research focuses on applying principles of ecology and integrated pest management to understand eco-evolutionary dynamics for the long-term management of cancer.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
Dr. Jon Czuba

Dr. Jonathan Czuba

Associate Professor
Department of Biological Systems Engineering

Dr. Czuba’s research focuses on the transport of water and sediment in streams and rivers and how that affects the distribution of invasive and native aquatic species, including fish, macroinvertebrates, freshwater mussels, and plants.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Restoration ecology

Miguel Diaz-Manrique

Ph.D. Student
School of Public and International Affairs

Diaz-Manrique’s research explores how perceptions of source credibility and trust shape attitudes and behaviors in environmental and natural resource conservation.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Social sciences

Dr. Jon Eisenback

Dr. Jonathan Eisenback

Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Eisenback’s research focuses on plant-parasitic nematodes.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Dr. Stacy Endriss

Assistant Professor
Department of Entomology

Dr. Endriss is an evolutionary ecologist with a passion for understanding the evolution, ecology, and impacts of introduced plants, especially in the context of species invasion and dispersal.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Dr. Sally Entrekin

Dr. Sally Entrekin

Professor
Department of Entomology

Dr. Entrekin studies how aquatic invertebrate identity and function are changed by human activities on land and in the water.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Restoration ecology
Luis Escobar

Dr. Luis Escobar

Assistant Professor
Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation

A key component of Dr. Escobar’s research is developing theory and methods to study the biogeography of infectious diseases, disease ecology, and invasion biology. Current projects include bat-borne rabies, chronic wasting disease, spatial epidemiology in the Anthropocene, and disease-biodiversity relationships.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics

Dr. Carrie Fearer

Dr. Carrie Fearer

Assistant Professor
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Dr. Fearer’s research explores the micro- and macro- level impacts of nonnative pathogens on forest ecosystems. She has studied laurel wilt disease, beech bark disease, beech leaf disease, and walnut witches’ broom.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Restoration ecology
Dr. Ed Fox

Dr. Edward Fox

Professor
Department of Computer Science

Dr. Fox is interested in assisting with any effort that makes use of technologies in the computing area, including artificial intelligence, digital libraries, information retrieval (e.g., search systems), websites, and human-computer interactions.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Data & artificial intelligence
Dr. David Franusich

David Franusich

Multimedia Designer
Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology

Franusich communicates complex ideas and concepts in creative, engaging, and digestible ways.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Arts and humanities
Dr. David Haak

Dr. David Haak

Associate Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Haak’s research is focused on identifying genomic regions of plants and microbes that can be used to improve plant health to promote a sustainable and secure food supply.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Hallie Harriman

Hallie Harriman

ISC Program Coordinator

Hallie is the Program Coordinator for the Invasive Species Collaborative (ISC) at Virginia Tech. A proud alumna of Virginia Tech (B.S. Natural Resources Conservation) and the University of Georgia (Masters of Agricultural and Environmental Education), she has a passion for practical and ethical land management. Hallie brings nearly ten years of natural resource management experience to the ISC and is now responsible for overseeing a diverse portfolio of programmatic, communicative, and administrative activities.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
Christen Hughes

Christen Hughes

Ph.D. Student
Department of Biochemistry

Christen’s research is focused on defining the male determining locus borders of Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) and whether it was inherited from a common ancestor (A. albopictus and A. aegypti).

Thematic Area(s):

  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. Benjamin Jantzen

Dr. Benjamin Jantzen

Associate Professor
Department of Philosophy

Dr. Jantzen’s current research involves clarifying the nature of biological entities and processes through philosophical analysis,  developing computational tools for automating scientific inference (especially concerning complex systems measured through time), and the monitoring, natural history, and conservation of invertebrates.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Arts & humanities
  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
Dr. Anne Jones

Dr. Anne Jones

Postdoctoral Researcher
Department of Entomology

Dr. Jones investigates temporal and spatial changes in insecticide resistance in German cockroach populations, as well as the chemical ecology of several pest and invasive species behavior.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Sara Klopf

Sara Klopf

Research Associate
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Klopf specializes in plant ecology and land reclamation, and manages research projects related to the revegetation of mined landscapes, the use of native plant species for reclamation and restoration, community ecology, wetland ecology, water quality monitoring, American chestnut restoration, and forest genetics.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
  • Restoration ecology
Dr. Tom Kuhar

Dr. Thomas Kuhar

Professor
Department of Entomology

Dr. Kuhar has over twenty years of experience working on various invasive species of agricultural importance including brown marmorated stink bug, kudzu bug, spotted lanternfly, Asian jumping worm, Asian longhorned tick, and others.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
Dr. Angie Larsen-Gray

Dr. Angela Larsen-Gray

Adjunct Faculty
Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Dr. Larsen-Gray’s research focuses on wildlife ecology in private, working forests throughout the eastern United States.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
Mikel Ann Manchester

Mikel Manchester

Associate Specialist
Department of Agricultural Leadership and Community Education

Manchester works with Native American Tribes to promote traditional ecological knowledge.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Restoration ecology
Dr. Joe McGlothlin

Dr. Joel McGlothlin

Associate Professor
Department of Biological Sciences

Dr. McGlothlin studies phenotypic evolution, including how traits of invasive species (such as brown anole lizards) change in response to their new environments following introduction. 

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics

Dr. Ron Meyers

Associate Professor
Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Dr. Meyers utilizes socio-ecological research to identify and test best practices in the development of utility-scale solar photovoltaic projects.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Social science, economics, & policy
Dr. Lindsay Miles

Dr. Lindsay Miles

Postdoctoral Researcher
Department of Entomology

Miles uses genomic data of invasive and pest invertebrates to understand evolution in urban habitats.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure

Harrison Miles

Harrison Miles

Ph.D. Student
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Miles studies the biological control of tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima) with a soil-borne fungus (Verticillium nonalfalfae) and their interaction with spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula).

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
Mitch Miller

Mitch Miller

Adjunct Drawing Professor
School of Visual Arts

Miller believes art and science work well together, when they work together, which is not often enough. He has interests in all drawing, sustainable design and systems, international art fairs, bugs, and art/science collaborations.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Arts and humanities
Meryl Mims

Dr. Meryl Mims

Associate Professor
Department of Biological Sciences

Dr. Mims’ research investigates how species’ traits and environmental attributes interact to influence community and population structure of aquatic organisms. Her overarching goal is to uncover, understand, and predict differential response of aquatic species to a changing landscape and climate.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. Ignacio Moore

Dr. Ignacio Moore

Professor
Department of Biological Sciences

Dr. Moore has studied the behavioral ecology and physiology of reproduction and stress in invasive species. Vertebrates of interest include tropical birds, reptiles, and amphibians.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
Dr. Beth Nyboer

Dr. Elizabeth Nyboer

Assistant Professor
Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Dr. Nyboer is a freshwater ecologist and conservation scientist exploring how anthropogenic stressors affect freshwater ecosystems and the fish, fisheries, and fishing communities they support.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Social science, economics, & policy

Grace O'Malley

Grace O’Malley

Ph.D. Student
Department of Biological Sciences

O’Malley uses bioacoustic monitoring to aid in invasive species detection and management, and seeks to support the effective conservation of amphibians.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Dr. Ksenia Onufrieva

Dr. Ksenia Onufrieva

Research Scientist
Department of Entomology

Dr. Onufrieva coordinates and manages research on the optimization of mating disruption tactics against spongy moths (Lymantria dispar) in support of the national “Slow the Spread Program”.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
Shirin Parizad

Shirin Parizad

Ph.D. Student
Department of Entomology – Southern AREC

Shirin examines the roles of invasive aphids and alternative host plants in barley yellow dwarf virus transmission to understand better how environmental changes affect its spread.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Michelle Prysby

Michelle Prysby

Master Naturalist Program Director
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Prysby directs the Virginia Master Naturalist (VMN) program, a statewide corps of volunteers engaged in natural resource education, science, and stewardship. Invasive species are a focus of VMN volunteer work.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
Dr. Leighton Reid

Dr. Leighton Reid

Assistant Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Reid studies ecological restoration and community assembly in tropical and temperate terrestrial ecosystems. 

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Restoration ecology
  • Social science, economics, & policy
Gabrielle Ripa

Gabrielle Ripa

Ph.D. Student
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Ripa is researching how to limit non-native plant invasion of stream restoration projects and how both restoration and invasion might impact the soundscape, particularly as it relates to anuran communities.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Restoration ecology
Haldre Rogers

Dr. Haldre Rogers

Associate Professor
Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Dr. Rogers’ research focuses on population and community ecology, plant-animal interactions, seed dispersal, pollination, food web dynamics, tropical biology, ​ecosystem services, and conservation. A majority of the research is conducted on the Mariana Islands, where due to the introduction of the brown tree snake, Guam’s forests are now functionally without birds.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamic
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure

Brian Ruether

Brian Ruether

Ph.D. Student
Department of Biological Sciences

Ruether studies chemically-mediated interactions between spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) and its host plants, tree-of-heaven and wine grapes.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
Scott Salom

Dr. Scott Salom

Professor and Graduate Program Director
Department of Entomology

Dr. Salom researches forest insect and weed pests, with an emphasis on developing tools and strategies to improve management for those pests. His main area of focus is the biological control of hemlock woolly adelgid and tree of heaven.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Todd Schenk

Dr. Todd Schenk

Associate Professor
School of Public and International Affairs

Dr. Schenk’s research interests include collaborative governance at the science-policy interface, wicked sustainability challenges, and civil discourse to better build empathy and understanding. 

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Social science, economics, & policy

Dr. David Schmale

Dr. David Schmale

Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Schmale’s research explores how microorganisms are transported over long distances in the atmosphere.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure
Dr. John Seiler

Dr. John Seiler

Professor
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Dr. Seiler’s research explores the ecophysiology of invasive plants, including acclimation to changing environments (e.g. light and temperature).

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
Tim Shively

Tim Shively

Ph.D. Student
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Shively’s research explores the biocontrol of tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima) with a soil-borne fungus (Verticllium nonalfalfae), as well as the restoration ecology of invaded areas.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Restoration ecology
Michael Sorice

Dr. Michael Sorice

Associate Professor
Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Dr. Sorice’s research interests focus on individual and group behavior as it relates to environmental stewardship with an emphasis on the role of natural resource users and landowners in protecting biodiversity and imperiled ecosystems.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Social science, economics, & policy

Jordan Thompson

M.S. Student
Department of Entomology

Thompson’s research explores the ecological impact of Asian jumping worm (Amynthas agrestis) on soil ecosystems through analyses of soil properties, microbial enzymes, and microarthropod communities.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Dr. Esra Buyuktahtakin Toy

Associate Professor
Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering

Dr. Buyuktahtakin Toy’s research explores optimal management of invasive species with mathematical modeling and artificial intelligence. Past species of interest include the emerald ash borer in North America, Sericea Lespedeza in the Great Plains, and buffelgrass in the Sonoran Desert.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Social science, economics, & policy
Paige Van de Vuurst

Paige Van de Vuurst

Ph.D. Student
Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health

Through vampire bats, Van de Vuurst studies the impacts of climate and landscape on the distribution and transmission of zoonotic diseases in Latin America. 

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication

Dr. Dara Wald

Dr. Dara M. Wald

Associate Professor
School of International Public Affairs

Dr. Wald’s research explores the drivers of conflict and the barriers to effective communication in environmental contexts, including issues of trust, identity, and power in the management of water, land, and wildlife. This work informs the domains of environmental psychology, environmental and risk communication, and public policy.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Community engagement & science communication
  • Psychology and human behavior
  • Social science, economics, & policy

Dr. James Westwood

Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Westwood studies parasitic plants, both native and introduced, with special emphasis on their biological adaptations for parasitism and potential mechanisms by which host plants respond to parasitism.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure

Dr. Scotty Yang

Assistant Professor
Department of Entomology

Dr. Yang studies invasive ants through an integrated approach combining genetics & genomics, behavior ecology and microbial interactions with a goal of developing biorational invasive ant management strategies that mitigate their impacts.

Thematic Area(s):

  • Biology, ecology, & ecosystem dynamics
  • Detection, management, prevention, & eradication
  • Genetics, genomics, & community/population structure