Geography alumni return to celebrate department's 75th anniversary

Eighty-five geography alumni returned to campus April 26-27 to celebrate the geography department’s 75th anniversary. Professor Emeritus of Geography Dr. Norm Moline '64 kicked off the weekend’s public events by sharing the history of the department. Five geography alumni followed with presentations on their work:

• Paul Brinkman '91, head of the Environmental Humanities Research Center at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences; "Now Is the Time to Collect: Salvage Zoology and the Colonial Geography of Extinction"
• Tom Klak '79, professor of environmental studies, University of New England in Biddeford, Maine; "Speed Breeding Transgenic American Chestnut: A Missing Keystone Species of the Eastern U.S."
• Dawn Carlson '90, traffic engineer at RK&K Civil Engineering in Atlanta, Ga.
• Kirk Huffaker '92, principal of Kirk Huffaker Preservation Strategies in Salt Lake City, Utah; "Past Forward – The Power of Preservation"
• Brad Jokisch '89, associate professor of geography, Ohio University; "International Migration: A Geographer’s Perspective and Experience (Latin America focus)"

"The alumni presentations were a great opportunity for the public to learn about the terrific faculty and alumni engaged in sharing key geography concepts and skills of the 21st century," Dr. Moline said.

Also during the weekend, alumni toured key sites in the Quad Cities and experienced the Mississippi River aboard the geography department’s research boat Scholarship.

Current faculty presented on their research and department programs. Tom Weigand '85 and Dr. Jennifer Horwath '97 Burnham, professor of geology, spoke at the closing dinner.