Since April 1, 2008, I have been serving as the interim head of the Department of Plant Sciences. For most of my years at UT, I have had a majority appointment in research (~90% research / 10% teaching). In 2004, I asked for and received a change to a major appointment in teaching. Teaching                ITC Faculty Spotlight (fall 2008) With the change in appointment, I also became the department's undergraduate director and instructional coordinator. We conducted an exhaustive undergraduate curricular review in 2004, which resulted in several course changes, a new concentration, and the popular Spring Turf Block. We established a student Advising Committee, developed a barage of new recruiting materials, instituted teaching peer evaluations, worked to integrate IT and modern learning approaches into our classes, and had a lot of other fun. In 2008 we introduced three new undergraduate concentrations: Bioenergy, Biotechnology, and Horticulture Science & Production. See our Careers site: in addition to giving general descriptions about employment opportunities for our graduates, it's nice to show real jobs that real people have obtained upon leaving our programs. Recent course responsibilities include Landscape Plant Physiology, Environmental Plant Ecophysiology, Horticultural Internet Technology, Plant & Garden Photography, and Freshman Seminar.                                                  article written by the spring 2008 students in PLSC 348 Other academic responsibilities in recent years include courses in plant drought physiology and scientific communication; College representative to the University's Graduate Council; departmental graduate program coordinator; service on graduate student committees; IT coordinator for the University's Environmental Consortium; service on a number of departmental and university committees. Research My research program addresses protection of plants and soils from environmental stresses. Specific emphases:      mycorrhizal symbiosis and plant drought biology      root-to-shoot signaling of soil drying in ornamental, agronomic and forest species      physiological determinants of plant drought tolerance and avoidance      tree response to climate change      response of dogwood to environment factors and diseases. Mycorrhizae: One of our main focuses over the years has been mycorrhizal symbiosis. The impacts of mycorrhizal colonization of soils are similar to those of introducing no-till practices: restored soil carbon, reduced soil erosion, and better soil quality. Farming accounts for an annual erosion loss of over 3 billion metric tons of soil in the US. Widespread use of mycorrhizae that reduced erosion by even just 1% -- a very conservative estimate, given the dramatic effect of the symbiosis on soil structure -- could translate into saving tens of millions of metric tons of soil annually in our nation. Mycorrhizal impact on remediation of the global greenhouse gas problem is also sizeable. A 10% increase in crop gas exchange from managing mycorrhizal symbiosis -- again a conservative estimate -- on just 5% of US land would increase carbon sequestration by 3.3 million metric tons ($66 million value) per year. Mycorrhizal improvement of soil structure and gas exchange also impacts plant health, through soil water infiltration, water holding capacity and plant drought resistance. Web work I learned to author web sites by getting "volunteered" in 1996 to do the departmental site for Ornamental Horticulture & Landscape Design. I created and maintain the Mycorrhizal Literature Exchange, the current departmental site, and a few others. In collaboration with Dr. Arnold Saxton, we're developing a statistical design and analysis web guide (DAWG) for biological and agricultural experiments. Route to get here I received my PhD in Horticulture from Washington State University in 1986, and my M.A. and B.S. in Biology and Botany from Southern Illinois University in 1975 and 1977, respectively. I postdoc'd for a year with the USDA Weed Physiology Group in Pullman and in September 1987 became a member of the faculty of the Department of Ornamental Horticulture & Landscape Design (OHLD) at UT. OHLD was reorganized in July 2001 into the current Department of Plant Sciences.