Professor and University Research Fellow, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, FL, USA

AGU embraces the global community and welcomes leaders representing various identities, voices and perspectives. List any identities, voices and perspectives you would bring, including but not limited to nationality, regional representations, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and anything else you feel comfortable sharing.

It has been a privilege to join and serve in global science communities that honor, respect, and elevate the identities, voices, and perspectives of their participants. My proudest experiences have been in leading projects and teams, with the responsibility to engage, empower, and represent colleagues from around the US and internationally, from academia, industry, and government. I also have felt deeply privileged to work at institutions, as well as in scientific communities, during periods of growth and change. I am grateful to have experienced a broad spectrum of academic institutions, from my undergraduate education at a small liberal arts college, to graduate and postdoctoral studies at public institutions, and to working as faculty while my university grew to a research-active Ph.D.-granting institution over the same period of time. Working in evolving settings, and in service to team science projects and communities, has broadened my own perspective on how we can leverage our capacity as a global network of human scientists. I will deeply value the opportunity to take on new roles that support networks of colleagues to plan, sustain, contribute, and communicate progress in science together, as we extend understanding of geophysics both across regions and ourselves.

Volunteer experience that you feel relates to this position:

I have been very pleased to serve in volunteer and service capacities, especially across my primary science networks and also surrounding my institution and towns. Adjacent to the Aeronomy community, I was most thrilled to serve in the Coupling, Energetics and Dynamics of Atmospheric Regions (CEDAR) Science Steering Committee from 2018 to 2021, and as Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Sub-Commission C2 Elected Vice Chair from 2018-2022. Through AGU, CEDAR, and COSPAR, I have been very pleased to join in panels, mentoring, and judging responsibilities.

The section secretary role is determined by individual sections. If needed, the secretary might be asked to serve as an alternate to the president or president-elect at a Council meeting.

As part of the section leadership team, how will you work in partnership with your president, president-elect, other leaders, and staff to communicate with and engage your members to achieve AGU’s vision, values, mission, and goals?

AGU’s Space Physics and Aeronomy (SPA) section spans networks of global participants who share capabilities, work together to advance science, and thrive through broad collaborative engagement and effective communications. While SPA’s Aeronomy (SA) focus may engage the Solar-Heliospheric and Magnetospheric communities most directly, it now reaches far more broadly across geophysics (and AGU sections), especially as we continue to discover the interconnectedness of Earth’s systems. These extend from below the surface, to the lower atmosphere and human environment, to natural hazards, and to other facets of the space environment, with implications for other planets. For those who may share my own reluctance to align their work with any single discipline, SPA’s incredible scientific and technical breadth provides constant exposure across disciplines and methodologies, with opportunities for collaboration across AGU sections. SPA’s community is welcoming as a scientific home in AGU, and it engages in science that is deeply compelling and rewarding. It would be an honor to help SPA to serve its mission, values, and goals, as we identify new problems, communicate our scientific impact, grow our connections, and deepen our understanding of systems. As an academic scientist and AGU member, in the role of Secretary, I will strive to connect and equitably represent the groups that enable and achieve progress in science, to capture the voices of the individuals who make up our communities, and to work with AGU’s and SPA’s leadership to extend our reach and understanding across boundaries of all forms.