Advising

SUPERVISION

(9)   Yayun Lin (expected to graduate in 2027), M.S. Geography, Topic: Saharan Dust and Atlantic Hurricane Characteristics, funded by NSF.

(8)   Farzeen Farooqi (expected to graduate in 2027), M.S. Geography, Topic: Analyze Traffic Accident in the U.S. using Machine Learning and AI techniques.

(7)   Kwadwo Frimpong (graduated in 2025), M.S. Geography, Title: Spatiotemporal analysis of urban heat island effect in AWUTU YENYA east municipality, from 1990 to 2023. Now a PhD student funded by UT Dallas.

(6)   Carson Evans (graduated in 2025), M.S. Geography, Title: Estimating wind energy potential in Michigan. Now a GIS technician at St. Joseph County, MI.

(5)   Redwan Kabir (graduated in 2024), M.S. Geography, Title: Assessing the Impact of Land Cover Change Dynamics on Regional Carbon Stock and Land Surface Temperature by Integrating InVEST Model and Geospatial Techniques. Now a GIS technician in the Missouri Department of Transportation.

(4)   Farhana Zisha (graduated in 2024), M.S. Geography, Title: A Spatiotemporal Analysis of the Impacts of the Natural and Human-induced Factors on Flood Exposure: A Case Study of the Coastal Region of Bangladesh. Now a GIS technician in the Missouri Department of Transportation.

(3)   Samuel Nimako Nyarko (graduated in 2018), M.S. Geography, Title: Spatial-Temporal Variability of Precipitation and Drought in the State of Arizona, USA. Entered the Ph.D. program from the College of Education and Human Development at Western Michigan University, now an assistant professor at Indiana University at Indianapolis.

(2)   Ryan Filbin (graduated in 2017, M.S. Geography, now Ph.D. student at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee), M.S. Geography, Title: Modeling Channel Response to Dam Removal in Lansing, Michigan, using SWAT. Published master's thesis work in a peer-reviewed journal, entered the Ph.D. program at The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

(1) Cheyenne Lei (graduated in 2016, now Ph.D. student at Michigan State University), M.S. Geography, Title: Spatial, Temporal Variability and Trends within the Tributaries of the Huron River. Published master's thesis work in a peer-reviewed journal, entered the Ph.D. program at Michigan State University, and is now a postdoc fellow at the University of Iowa.

Committee Member

(10) Charlie Kovacs (expected to graduate in 2026), M.S. Geography, Title: Assessing Tourism-Induced Impacts in Communities around the Indiana Dunes National Park

(9)  Tangiha Majumder (expected to graduate in 2026), M.S. Geography, Title: Sylhet's Changing Landscape: Impacts of Urban Growth and Climate on Water and Vegetation

(8)   Ian Stauffer (expected to graduate in 2026), M.S. Geography, Title: Improving Local Climatic Zone Mapping Accuracy Through Building Height.

(7)   Katie Beadling (graduated in 2025), M.S. Geography, Title: Ballast Water & Environmental Drivers of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease.

(6)   Skye Leake (graduated in 2020), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Volumetric Soil Moisture Availability Related to Intensification of Mesoscale Convective Complex Thunderstorm Events Across the Dakotas.

(5)   Nathalie Woloszyn (graduated in 2019), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Forest Disease and Climate Change in Canada.

(4)   Rajesh Sigdel (graduated in 2019), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Do better economic opportunities drive land cover change? A case study using remote sensing and personal interviews to understand Land use and land cover change in Sunsari district, Nepal. Entered the Ph.D. program from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.

(1)  Danielle Molenaar (graduated in 2018), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Determinants of Household Water Use in the City of Kalamazoo, Michigan: The Role of Climate and Socioeconomic Factors.

(2)  Nirjala Koirala (graduated in 2018), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Interannual Variations of Snowfall in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and Impacts of Large-Scale Oscillations.

(3)  Bandhan Ayon (graduated in 2017, M.S. Geography, now a Ph.D. student of the Civil Engineering Program at WMU), M.S. Geography, Committee Member, Title: Snow and Non-snow Events Based Winter Traffic Crash Pattern Analysis, entered the Ph.D. program from the Civil Engineering Program at Western Michigan University.

Undergraduate Internship

(6) Olivia Seiz (2025 Spring) Saharan Dust and Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, funded by WMU Undergraduate Research Fund. Oliver continues her graduate study from a funded program at Case Western Reserve University.

(5) Marybeth Melcher (2022 Spring) Tropical Cyclone Translation Speeds in the Northern Atlantic Ocean, undergraduate (summa cum laude) thesis supported by WMU Lee Honors College. A peer-reviewed manuscript in progress.

(4) Pascual Aguilera (2019 Fall to 2020 Summer) Topographic Enhancement of Tropical Cyclone Precipitation (TCP) in Eastern Mexico, published a peer-reviewed publication, funded by the NSF LSAMP project.

(3) Natasha Perry (2019 Spring) Developing a Web GIS App for displaying Tropical Cyclone Precipitation in the U.S.

(2) Alfonso Hernandez (2019 Summer) Tropical Cyclone Precipitation in North America.

(1) Nicholas Font (2019 Spring) GEOG 5000: Extreme Weather and Climate Change, focusing on the extreme winter weather under a changing climate.