One of the primary reasons Penn State is recognized around the globe as a distinguished university is the sterling caliber of its faculty. As a World Campus student, you will enjoy the opportunity to learn with the most experienced online educators in the geospatial field.

Anthony C. Robinson, PhD

Anthony Robinson is the lead faculty member for the postbaccalaureate certificate and master's in geographic information systems (MGIS) at Penn State. For the Dutton Institute, he teaches and advises students in the MGIS program and coordinates faculty and staff to handle student affairs to ensure the long-term sustainability and strength of Penn State's online geospatial education portfolio. He also serves as assistant director for the GeoVISTA Center in the Department of Geography.

His research focuses on the science of interface and interaction design for geovisualization and geovisual analytics tools. He has developed interface design and usability assessment methods for integrating geographic visualization tools with work in epidemiology, crisis management, and homeland security. Robinson’s recent research projects have focused on the design of map symbol standards, developing tools for collecting and adding meaning to geographic information, and eye-tracking to design new geovisualization techniques. Anthony received a bachelor of science in geography from East Carolina University, and a master of science and doctorate in geography from Penn State. Anthony can be reached by email at arobinson@psu.edu. View Anthony's full academic CV.

Todd Bacastow, PhD

Dr. Todd S. Bacastow is a professor of practice for geospatial intelligence in Penn State's Dutton e-Education Institute. His primary areas of expertise include implementation and management of large-scale programs, geospatial technology policy, geospatial information technology governance, and critical infrastructure protection. Dr. Bacastow has worked with businesses and federal and state government on geospatial technology policy issues and has served on state and regional planning committees, preparing studies, providing expert testimony, and organizing numerous workshops. He teaches geospatial systems design in Penn State's master of GIS program; serves on the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation's accreditation panel, developing certification guidelines for geospatial intelligence professionals; and leads a team supporting the development of the Pennsylvania Map, a component of the National Map.

Before joining Penn State, Dr. Bacastow served in the U.S. Army in a variety of civil-military, leadership, and technical positions in the United States and Europe. He was previously an assistant professor in the Department of Geography and the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and an associate professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at the United States Military Academy. His current research involves geospatial digital rights management, geospatial technology governance, and geospatial systems design. Todd can be reached by email at bacastow@psu.edu.

Joseph A. Bishop, PhD

Dr. Bishop is the geospatial coordinator for Riparia, a research center in the Department of Geography at Penn State. His responsibilities include the application of GIScience to the conceptual design and analysis of most of Riparia’s projects, where he strives to add a significant geospatial dimension to the interdisciplinary projects of the center. Joe’s research interests focus on the changing landscape structures and their influence on vertebrate habitats and water quality. Joe developed and now teaches GEOG 587: Conservation GIS, part of the MGIS course offerings.

Before joining Penn State, Joe worked as an environmental planner with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, a data manager and GIS specialist for The Nature Conservancy’s Natural Heritage Program in Connecticut, and then part of a GIS research team for the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) in Costa Rica, where he assisted with the installation of the GIS at their La Selva biological research station.

In addition to his academic research responsibilities, Joe works with the ACEER (Amazon Center for Environmental Education and Research) Foundation, internationally as a science adviser, and locally with the ClearWater Conservancy on their board of directors. For both groups he applies GIS to their respective conservation missions. Joe can be reached by email at jab190@psu.edu.

Justine Blanford, PhD

Justine is a research associate at Penn State, dividing her time between the GeoVISTA Center and the John A. Dutton e-Education Institute. For the Dutton Institute she is an instructor for GEOG 586 and GEOG 583. Justine is a GIS specialist/analyst with more than 12 years' experience in both academic and non-academic environments throughout the world including North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa. Her current research interests include using GIS and spatial analysis to investigate spatial and temporal phenomena, particularly the ecology of disease; and investigating connectivity between locations and for the management and monitoring of the environment. Justine can be reached by email at jib18@psu.edu. 

George Chaplin, MS, GISP

George has worked in GIS for more than 12 years and teaches GEOG 488, GEOG 583, and GEOG 864 online. He earned a master of science in GIS with distinction and was the winner of the Association of Geographic Information Student of the Year award. He has interests in anthropology as well as geography, and uses modeling, spatial statistics, and complex spatial analysis in his research at Penn State. He studies human ecology, ancestry, and epidemiology. George can be reached by email at guc5@psu.edu.

Mark Corson, PhD

Dr. Mark Corson is an associate professor of geography at Northwest Missouri State University, and a former faculty member in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at the United States Military Academy. Dr. Corson specializes in political and military geography, with regional expertise in Europe and Southwest Asia. He teaches the Trends in GIS course in the Northwest Missouri Department of Geography's master's program and, as a visiting associate professor at Penn State, is developing the Geographic Foundations of Geospatial Intelligence course for the certificate program in geospatial intelligence.

Dr. Corson is also a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. His military specialties are transportation and multifunctional logistics. In 2001, in Kosovo, Colonel Corson served as the deputy chief of the Multinational Brigade East Joint Implementation Commission and as liaison officer and trainer to Regional Task Group Six of the Kosovo Protection Corps. He was heavily engaged in the NATO peacekeeping effort to defuse the Presevo Valley and Macedonian insurgencies. He also commanded the 450th Movement Control Battalion during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) One. The 450th conducted theatre movement control functions in Iraq and later in Kuwait, from March 2003 to March 2004. It was instrumental in the planning and initial execution of the rotation of U.S. and coalition forces between OIF One and Two. This surge was the largest military movement since World War II. Colonel Corson now commands the 561st Regional Support Group (RSG), in Omaha, Nebraska. The 561st RSG is a brigade-level headquarters capable of conducting the full range of multifunctional logistics operations in any environment and across the spectrum of conflict. Mark can be reached by email at mwc11@psu.edu.

Jim Detwiler, MS

Jim Detwiler is lead instructor and author of GEOG 485: GIS Programming and Customization and GEOG 489: GIS Application Development. He is also a co-author of GEOG 484: GIS Database Development. He also teaches a GIS programming course for undergraduates in residence and conducts ArcGIS training as part of the Department of Geography's ESRI-authorized learning center. Prior to coming to Penn State, Jim worked as a GIS analyst for the Chester County (Pennsylvania) Bureau of Land Records. He received a bachelor's degree in earth science from Penn State and a master's degree in geography from the University of Delaware. Jim can be reached by email at jimdetwiler@psu.edu.

Adrienne Gruver, MS

Adrienne Gruver is a lead instructor of GEOG 486: Cartography and Visualization. She has a bachelor's degree in biology, is a certified science illustrator, and completed her master's degree in geography from Penn State. In addition to teaching in the GIS programs, she does freelance cartographic work. Her research interests include GIS for public health, geovisualization, and map design. Adrienne can be reached by email at abg152@psu.edu.

Frank Hardisty, PhD

Frank has more than 25 years of programming experience and enjoys new programming challenges. He received his doctorate in geography at Penn State in 2003, under the direction of Alan MacEachren. He then taught and researched geographic visualization at the University of South Carolina until 2007, when he rejoined the Department of Geography at Penn State. Frank can be reached by email at hardisty@psu.edu.

Patrick Kennelly, PhD

Pat Kennelly is author and instructor of GEOG 584: Geospatial Technology Project Management. He is a graduate faculty member in Penn State's Department of Geography and a student adviser in the MGIS program. He has project management experience in environmental/engineering consulting and state geological surveying. He is a visiting assistant professor at Penn State and an assistant professor at Long Island University in New York. Pat can be reached by email at pjk15@psu.edu.

Fritz Kessler, PhD

Fritz Kessler is an instructor for GEOG 861: Map Projections for Professionals. He is currently an associate professor of geography at Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Maryland, where he teaches a range of cartography and geography courses. He received his doctorate from the University of Kansas in 1999 and his master's degree from Penn State in 1991. He recently collaborated with other Kansas PhD alumnus on thematic cartography and geographic visualization. Fritz can be reached by email at fck2@psu.edu.

Beth Fletcher King, MEd

Beth King is co-author and instructor of GEOG 483: Problem Solving with GIS. She sometimes teaches GEOG 482: Nature of Geographic Information and developed GEOG 488: Acquiring and Integrating Geospatial Data for the MGIS program. Beth is the assistant program manager for advising, which follows the progress of students in the master of geographic information systems (MGIS) degree program. In this role, Beth has regular communication with students to identify questions and concerns and to ensure that these are addressed by the appropriate faculty member, staff member, or administrator. She previously worked as a GIS analyst for a private water/wastewater engineering firm, where she managed a wide range of GIS projects, from turnkey sanitary sewer conversion to 911 rural addressing. Beth can be reached by email at bethking@psu.edu.

Alexander Klippel, PhD

Dr. Alexander Klippel directs the Human Factors in GIScience Lab and is an assistant professor for geographical information science at the GeoVISTA Center in the Department of Geography at Penn State. He also serves as the MGIS program chairperson in the Department of Geography. His research interests center on multidisciplinary topics at the interface between spatial cognition and GIScience, especially the area of geographic event conceptualization and the integration of cognitive factors into formal characterizations of dynamic spatial processes. A second line of his research at Penn State is the interaction of people, environments, and mobile and static devices, i.e. location-based services (LBS).

Before Alex came to Penn State he worked as a postdoctoral research associate at the CRC for Spatial Information, geomatics department, and was a founding member of the spatial information science research group at the University of Melbourne. He also spent time in the geography department and cognitive science emphasis at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Alex started his doctoral studies in Hamburg at the graduate program for cognitive science. He received his doctorate in informatics from the University of Bremen, Germany. He has co-authored the project MapSpace, which is part of the Transregional Collaborative Research Center for Spatial Cognition and worked in the AspectMap project (spatial cognition priority program, German Science Foundation). Alex can be reached by email at klippel@psu.edu.

Rachel Kornak, MS, GISP

Rachel Kornak teaches GEOG 487: Environmental Applications of GIS. She is based at the University of Michigan where she is a GIS/database manager. Rachel previously worked in environmental consulting and land-use planning. She enjoys using GIS to manage and share information. She recently designed a GIS property management system which won the 2007 IMAGIN GIS for Everyone Award. Rachel completed a bachelor of science degree in environmental geology and Spanish, and a master's degree in environmental science at the University of Michigan. She also completed a certificate in GIS at Penn State and is a certified GISP. Rachel can be reached by email at rnk114@psu.edu.

Doug Miller, PhD

Doug Miller is the instructor of GEOG 596A and B and an associate professor of geography at Penn State. In addition to teaching for the MGIS program, he is the director of the Center for Environmental Informatics (CEI) in the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute. Doug can be reached by email at miller@essc.psu.edu.

Andrew Murdoch, MGIS

Andrew Murdoch is the instructor and course developer for GEOG 489. Based in the Washington, D.C., metro area where he works as a GIS programmer, Andrew has worked as a GIS analyst and GIS programmer for more than 15 years. He has a bachelor of arts in geography from Virginia Tech and is an alumnus of the Penn State MGIS program. Andrew can be reached by email at ahm126@psu.edu.

David O'Sullivan, PhD

David O'Sullivan lives in New Zealand, where he is associate professor of geography at the University of Auckland. Originally from Ireland, David holds degrees from the University of Cambridge (England), University of Glasgow (Scotland), and University College London, where he was the first doctorate to "escape" from the innovative Center for Advanced Spatial Analysis (CASA). David got involved in the World Campus MGIS program when he was an assistant professor of geography at Penn State, and has continued his involvement from afar.

David is an internationally recognized researcher with numerous journal article publications in the areas of spatial analysis and dynamic spatial modeling. His current research focuses on the measurement and simulation of the social dynamics in urban neighborhoods. David is presently involved in international collaborative research with colleagues at Stanford University and Penn State. He is co-author, with Professor David Unwin, of the book Geographic Information Analysis. David can be reached by email at dbo2@psu.edu.

Jay B. Parrish, PhD, PG

Dr. Jay B. Parrish is a professor of practice for geospatial intelligence in Penn State's Dutton e-Education Institute. His primary areas of expertise include image processing, remote sensing, and geobotany.

Dr. Parrish has worked in state and local government initiating the creation of geospatial data and applications. He has served on geospatial academic advisory boards and organized numerous remote sensing workshops. He teaches remote sensing in Penn State's master of GIS program; has served on the National Geospatial Advisory Committee (NGAC) as well as president of PAMAGIC, PAGIC (state geospatial organizing committees) and as acting GIO of the commonwealth. He conceived and oversaw the creation of the Pennsylvania Map (PAMAP), a component of the National Map, which includes statewide orthoimagery and lidar. He also worked with Penn State to create PennPilot, a data repository of scanned historic aerial photography. As Pennsylvania's state geologist he was an advocate for the concept of a National Enhanced Elevation Assessment.

Before joining Penn State, Dr. Parrish worked as a geophysicist for Mobil Oil in Texas; a remote sensing specialist at Geospectra Corporation in Michigan; a research assistant in radar geobotany with Ball Aerospace at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory at CalTech in Pasadena, California; an assistant professor of geophysics at Bowling Green State University, Ohio; a futures researcher with Mennonite Voluntary Service in Seattle, Washington; a forensic remote sensing and GIS director for R.E. Wright Environmental/SAIC, Middletown, Pennsylvania; the director of GIS for Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; and the state geologist of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg.

His current research involves energy-related uses of remotely sensed data and geobotanical remote sensing. Jay can be reached by email at jbp3@psu.edu.

Sterling Quinn, MGIS

Sterling is an author and an instructor for GEOG 485: GIS Programming and Automation. He works as a product engineer on the ArcGIS Server development team at Esri, and lives in the Olympia, Washington, area. Sterling's interests include web map optimization, cloud computing, and technical communication. Sterling has experienced much online learning from the perspective of a student, having completed the MGIS degree from Penn State in 2009. Sterling can be reached by email at sdq107@psu.edu.

Karen Schuckman, CP, PLS, MGIS

Karen Schuckman is a senior lecturer in geography and a doctoral student in civil and environmental engineering at Penn State, teaching remote sensing and geospatial technology in the online GIS programs offered by the Dutton e-Education Institute. She also serves as a consultant to the URS Corporation in Gaithersburg, Maryland, where she provides expertise in remote sensing and photogrammetry to engineering practice groups, including floodplain mapping, disaster response and preparedness, critical infrastructure, and transportation.

As the geospatial technology leader at URS in 2005–06, Karen supported response, recovery, and mitigation projects with FEMA following Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. From 1995 through 2005 she was with the EarthData group, where her positions included geospatial applications director for EarthData Solutions, senior vice president of EarthData Technologies, and president and general manager of EarthData International of North Carolina. Notable projects she led for EarthData include lidar acquisition for the North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program, numerous transportation mapping projects for state DOTs, and technology demonstration projects for NOAA, NASA, and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Prior to joining the private sector, Karen worked for the USGS National Mapping Division, in Menlo Park, California. She is the immediate past president of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, vice chair of the NOAA Advisory Committee for Commercial Remote Sensing, and a member of the National Research Council Committees on Floodplain Mapping Technologies and FEMA Flood Map Accuracy. Karen can be reached by email atkschuckman@psu.edu

Jim Sloan, MS

Jim Sloan is lead instructor and co-author of GEOG 484: GIS Database Development and also teaches GEOG 482: The Nature of Geographic Information. He has taught GIS and cartography courses since 1995, at both Penn State and the University of Florida. Jim can be reached by email at jls@essc.psu.edu.

Wes Stroh, MS

Wes Stroh is lead author on a newly developed course titled "Location Intelligence for Business" offered in 2011–12. He is an instructor for GEOG 482: The Nature of Geographic Data, and also offers an independent study in geographic data as well. In addition to his instructor duties, Wes works on program development and marketing for the CPGIS/GEOINT/MGIS programs and with the instructional design team on course enhancements.

Prior to GIS and geography, Wes worked in the industry in technical sales, marketing, and product management with organizations such as AT&T, XO Communications, May Department Stores, Coach, and Eddie Bauer. He is currently pursuing a doctorate part-time with research interests in marketing and business strategy applications of GIS. He holds a master of geography from Penn State, bachelor of arts in history from Arizona State University, and a certificate in network design and analysis from the University of Denver. Wes can be reached by email at wjstroh@psu.edu.

George Van Otten, PhD

George Van Otten is the author of a newly developed course, GEOG 880: Regional Geography for Civil Security (temporarily numbered GEOG 897). George is a geographer with more than forty years of experience in the government and academia. He has published more than twenty articles, four book chapters, and numerous presentations. George is a former dean of training of the 111th MI Brigade, U.S. Army Intelligence Center, Fort Huachuca, Arizona. George can be reached by email at gav10@psu.edu. 

Jan Van Sickle, PhD

Jan Van Sickle has more than forty years of experience in GIS, GPS, surveying, and mapping. He created and led the GIS department at Qwest Communications for the company's 25,000-mile worldwide fiber optic network. He began working with GPS in the early 1980s when he supervised control work using the macrometer, the first commercial GPS receiver. He supervised the first GPS control survey of the Grand Canyon. He led the team that collected, processed, and reported GPS ground control positions for more than 120 cities around the world for the ortho-rectification of satellite imagery now used in a global web utility.

Jan has led nationwide seminars based on his books, GPS for Land Surveyors and 1,001 Solved Fundamental Surveying Problems. The latter book has been serialized in the magazine POB. His latest book is Basic GIS Coordinates for Taylor and Francis Publishers, London. He has been a featured speaker at many conferences, including GITA conference and the Institute of Navigation (ION) Annual Meeting. He was formerly on the board of RM-ASPRS and was the vice chairman of GIS in the Rockies. Jan earned his master's degree in engineering from the University of Colorado and his doctoral degree in GIS engineering from the University of Colorado Denver.

He is a licensed professional land surveyor in Colorado, California, Oregon, and North Dakota. Jan can be reached by email at jxv20@psu.edu.

Michael L. Thomas, PhD

Dr. (LtCol) Michael L. Thomas is currently assigned to Space and Naval Warfare Center (SPAWAR) Charleston as a C4ISR systems engineer in the Communications and Networks Division currently stationed in Germany providing technical support to HQ EUCOM. In this capacity he is responsible for the design, implementation, and fielding of major network projects initiated by the Navy for sister services and other U.S. government customers. He was on detached special duty after being activated in March 2007, and has served a short tour at the Pentagon and as a Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) LNO to the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), along with a teaching assignment to the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) as an instructor teaching cyberwar courses. He is currently serving as a faculty member teaching GeoInt courses in the graduate school for World Campus. His email is mlt222@psu.edu or mthomas304@att.net.

Jim Wright, PhD

A lecturer in GIS, Jim Wright is based in the School of Geography at the University of Southampton in England. In addition to researching aspects of primary health care in the United Kingdom with GIS, Jim has research interests in GIS and health in developing countries. He is currently involved in a project that is looking at ways of managing water quality test results from developing countries using GIS. Jim can be reached by email at j.a.wright@soton.ac.uk.

Michelle Zeiders, MS

Michelle Zeiders teaches both GEOG 483: Problem Solving with GIS and GEOG 484: GIS Database Development. She has been teaching introductory and software-intensive GIS courses since 1998. Prior to joining the certificate program faculty, Michelle worked as a GIS programmer/instructor for the Penn State Population Research Institute; a GIS project manager/instructor for the Institute for Transportation Research and Education at North Carolina State University; a GIS project manager at a private civil engineering firm; and a GIS analyst at MapQuest. She received a bachelor's degree in public administration and a master's degree in geoenvironmental studies from Shippensburg University, Pennsylvania. Michelle can be reached by email at zeiders@psu.edu.