Western Illinois University: Macomb Campus

Faculty and Staff

Our faculty and staff are the heart of our department. Use this page to find out who our faculty and staff are, how to contact them, and what courses and research they are involved with.

 

Interim Department Chair

Michael A. Romano

 

Find Faculty & Staff:

 

• Botany
• Microbiology
• Zoology
• Science Education
• Directors, Curators, and Faculty Student Advisors
• Staff
• Emeritus Faculty

 

Faculty (Arranged by Major Research Focus)

 

Botany

• Afitlhile, Meshack
  Lipid biochemistry and jasmonates
• Jenkins, Sean E., Director, Kibbe Life Station
  Landscape & fire ecology, forest & grassland ecology, plant ecology
• Hum-Musser, Sue
  Plant-Insect pathogen interactions, molecular biology
• Meiers, Susan T.
  Algal ecology & biogeography, algal systematics, animal behavior
• Ribbens, Eric, R.M. Myers Herbarium Curator
  Plant ecology & taxonomy, distribution of native Illinois cacti
• Romano, Susan P.
  Plant Ecology &  GIS (geographic information systems)
• Vogel, Thomas V.
  Plant genetics, human reproductive biology, science education

Microbiology

• Alton, Thomas H.
  Molecular biology & antimicrobial activities of plants, biology of Archaea, global warming
• French, Wendell L.
  Virology, immunology, the role of bacteriophages in disease transmission
• Holt, Scott M.
  Industrial microbiology, classical mutagenesis, molecular biology & fermentation
• Porras-Alfaro, Andrea
  Mycology, microbial molecular ecology

Zoology

• Alton, Althea K.
  Biology of aging, women's health issues, genetics
• Bonnan, Matthew F., Curator of Vertebrate Osteology; FMEA Minor Advisor
  Functional morphology, vertebrate paleobiology, geometric morphometrics
• Engel, Jeff E.
  Neurobiology, behavior, biology of aging
• Lamer, Jim, Curator of Reptiles and Birds
  Kibbe Research Station
• McCravy, Ken, Curator of Invertebrates
  Insect ecology, forest entomology, biogeography
• Meagher, Shawn
  Parasitology, genetics, conservation biology, mammalogy
• Musser, Richard O.
  Plant-herbivore interactions, molecular ecology, physiological ecology
• Peer, Brian D. Curator of Birds
  Ornithology, behavioral ecology, coevolution, molecular ecology
• Romano, Michael A.
  Herpetology, molecular ecology and systematics of amphibians, reptiles, and birds
• Spier, Timothy W. Curator of Fishes
  Ichthyology, fresh-water fish ecology and management, GIS
• Thomas, Jeanette A.*
  Marine & terrestrial mammalogy, bioacoustics, zoo animal enrichment
  *IMPORTANT: Students wanting to conduct research with Dr. Thomas MUST live near the WIU-Quad Cities campus in Moline or near the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. NO students from the Main WIU Campus are advised by Dr. Thomas.

Science Education

• Barden-Gabbei, Laura M.
  Science learning, educational technology, discourse processes

Directors, Faculty Advisors, and Curators

• Bonnan, Matthew F.
  Curator of Vertebrate Osteology
• Jenkins, Sean E.
  Director, Kibbe Life Station
• Peer, Brian D.
  Curator of Birds & Mammals
• Ribbens, Eric
  Curator of the R.M. Myers Herbarium
• Romano, Susan P.
  Graduate Student Advisor
  Curator of Fishes
• Viadero Jr., Roger C.
  Director, Institute for Environmental Studies
• Romano, Michael A.
  Curator of Reptiles & Amphibians

 

Staff

 

• Hillyer, Jeffrey L.
  Greenhouse Manager
• Lamer, James T.
  Alice L. Kibbe Field Station Manager
• Smith, Roland H.
  Animal Caretaker
• Brown, Amy
  Administrative Assistant to faculty
• Vicki Walters
  Undergraduate Advisor
• Wilson, Luann
  Storekeeper

 

Emeritus Faculty

 

• Dunstan, Thomas C.
  Field ornithology
• Edwards, H. Herbert
  Fungal infection in plants, soybean rust disease
• Gessner, Robert V.
  Mycology
• Jahn, Lawrence A.
  Ichthyology
• Keudell, Kenneth C.
  Virology
• Nielsen, James P.
  Physiology & biology of aging