Associate Directors /Co-Principal Investigator

Nicole Ernst , Associate Director /Co-Principal Investigator of the National Geospatial Center of Excellence, nlernst@hacc.edu

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.

Ann Johnson, Associate Directors /Co-Principal Investigator of the National Geospatial Center of Excellence, ajohnson0847@kctcs.edu or ann@baremt.com

Ann’s background includes a Bachelor and Master of Science degree in Geology. While teaching Earth Sciences, she became interested in how Geographic Information Systems can be used as a tool in geology and education. After attending an NSF funded workshop to help college faculty learn GIS, she developed a GIS Certificate Program at San Bernardino Valley College. In 1997 she joined ESRI as Higher Education Manager helping colleges and universities develop GIS programs. She has been Co-PI on several NSF Grants related to GIS and two-year colleges and is a co-editor for the UCGIS Body of Knowledge and a lead on the development of the Geospatial Technology Competency Model curriculum outlines for Model Courses. Currently she is Associate Director of the GeoTech Center NSF grant to support community college geospatial programs and Co-PI on the iGETT NSF grant to provide faculty education in remote sensing. She lives in Salmon, Idaho with husband, Robert, a dog, Siv and 4 chickens – a great place for fishing, geology and GIS.

Rich Schultz, Associate Directors /Co-Principal Investigator of the National Geospatial Center of Excellence, rschultz@imsa.edu

Rich is a Senior Online Learning Administrator at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) in Aurora, Illinois. Rich holds a PhD. in environmental geochemistry from the University of Cincinnati, an M.S. in geology from Wichita State University and a B.S. in geology from Illinois State University. Dr. Schultz is the sole or senior author of more than ninety publications, book chapters, presentations, and abstracts. His major areas of research are: geospatial technologies, unmanned aerial systems (UASs), geoscience education, online/distance learning, geospatial thinking, global climate change, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and the use of technology in teaching geography literacy.
Dr. Schultz has previously chaired the Geography Education Specialty Group for the Association of American Geographers (AAG) and has served on the AAG Membership Committee as well as chairing the National Council for Geographic Education’s Awards Committee and serving on the NCGE Nominating Committee as well as the Vice President for Products & Publications for the NCGE Administrative Committee. Rich recently served on the AAG AP GIS&T Proposal Committee and is a member of the Certification Governance Board (CGB) for the National Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (NGIF). Rich is a certified Part 107 remote drone pilot.

Dr. Schultz was the recipient of the 2008 Distinguished Teaching Award from the National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE) and also received the “GIS Service Award” for geospatial education service to the Illinois GIS Association (ILGISA) in October 2009. He was the inaugural recipient of the Richard Hilton Collaboration Award for the GIS Community in Illinois from ILGISA in 2010. He serves on the Editorial Boards for the Journal of Geography for the National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE), the Review of International Geographical Education Online (RIGEO), and the Research in Geographic Education at the Gilbert M. Grovenor Center for Geographic Education.

Ken Yanow, Associate Directors /Co-Principal Investigator of the National Geospatial Center of Excellence,619-300-5954, kyanow@swccd.edu

Ken is a Professor of Geographical Sciences, has been at Southwestern College for the past 12 years, where he teaches Physical Geography, Earth Science, GIScience, and Remote Sensing. He received his Bachelorette degree from UC Santa Barbara in Physics, and two Master degrees (Astronomy and Geography) from San Diego State University. Professor Yanow is co-PI for the NSF-funded National Geospatial Technology Center of Excellence (the GeoTech Center), where his primary research focus has been the recruitment and retention of underserved and underrepresented populations into geospatial technology courses and programs.

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Associate Directors / Co-Principal Investigator
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Associate Directors

The Associate Directors are responsible for one of the Goals of the GeoTech Center as well as the Objectives and Activities of the goal. In addition the Associate Directors advise and assist the Director in the overall direction of the Center. Each of the Associate Directors are nationally recognized leaders in the field of geospatial technology.