image: Nancy Huntly, professor in Utah State University's Department of Biology and director of the USU Ecology Center, has been named a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America. view more
Credit: USU
LOGAN, UTAH, USA -- Utah State University professor Nancy Huntly has been named a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America, the world's largest community of professional ecologists. One of 28 honorees this year, Huntly will be formally recognized during the ESA's annual meeting August 5-10, 2018, in New Orleans.
Huntly, who joined USU in 2011 after serving as program director of the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology and Long Term Ecological Research Programs, is a professor in USU's Department of Biology and serves as director of the USU Ecology Center. In addition, Huntly leads USU's NSF-funded Climate Adaptation Science graduate specialization program and has chaired Science Unwrapped, the USU College of Science's public outreach program, for the past six years.
The ESA lauded Huntly's "foundational research on herbivory, coexistence and human ecology," as well as her commitment to and innovation in both science communication and the application of ecological principles to the management of natural resources.
"Nancy is an outstanding scientist, professor and administrator," says Maura Hagan, dean of USU's College of Science. "Her contributions to the establishment and leadership of the USU Climate Adaptation Science program epitomize her innovations in science communication, as well as her scholarly research achievements. Nancy is an exceptional role model to her students and to the young faculty she mentors."
Chris Luecke, dean of USU's Quinney College of Natural Resources, calls Huntly a "tremendous asset to Utah State University."
"Nancy very competently administers one of the largest academic ecology programs in the country, while still competing successfully for grant dollars and publishing seminal research," Luecke says. "She clearly deserves the honor of being named an ESA Fellow."
Huntly's areas of research focus include community ecology and biodiversity, human ecology, species interactions and food webs, as well as arid, alpine and arctic places. Prior to joining Utah State, she served on the Independent Scientific Review Panel of the Oregon-based Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, as well as the Independent Scientific Advisory Board, which serves the council, NOAA Fisheries and the Columbia River Indian Tribes.
Throughout her career, Huntly has been a key advocate for students and faculty from underrepresented groups. She's a major contributor of the NSF-funded iUTAH project's education, outreach and diversity efforts in areas of workforce development and diversity. Huntly also assisted with the establishment of a USU student chapter of SACNAS, the Society for Advancement of Hispanics/Chicanos and Native Americans in Science.
As chair of Science Unwrapped, Huntly oversees a six-person committee and dozens of volunteers, who present community-wide science outreach events, which draw some 500 attendees, ranging in age from preschoolers to senior citizens, to USU's campus each month during the academic year.
A native of northern Michigan, Huntly earned a bachelor's degrees from Kalamazoo College in 1977. She completed a doctorate in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Arizona in 1985.
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