Associate Director / Co-Principal Investigator

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​Nicole Ernst
Title:      Associate Director / Co-Principal Investigator of the National Geospatial Center of Excellence

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Email :   [email protected]
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Nicole holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in political science (Slippery Rock University) and environmental studies (Montana State University) and a Master of Arts degree in Geography from East Carolina University. In her professional career, she has worked as a cartographer for the National Park Service at Bighorn Canyon in Montana/Wyoming and then for the Outer Banks Group of parks in North Carolina. Currently she is Associate Professor of Geospatial Technology at Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) in Central Pennsylvania. At HACC she teaches for the college’s Virtual Learning unit and uses community based geospatial projects to enhance the student experience. In addition to her teaching duties, Nicole has serves as co-chair for the Central Pennsylvania GIS Day event which is a partnership event between HACC and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Esri, PASDA, and the Nature Conservancy. 

Nicole was the recipient of the 2014 Distinguished Geospatial Educator Award from the Geotech Center and was also the 2017 recipient of the Pennsylvania Mapping and Geospatial Information Consortium (PAMAGIC) Excellence Award. Nicole serves as a steering committee member for the Pennsylvania Alliance for Geographic Education and she is a member of the Pennsylvania GIS Conference Planning Committee, PAMAGIC, and the Pennsylvania Geographical Society.