Dr. Gathany found his niche in the interdisciplinary science of ecology. He is passionate about challenging students as they develop a holistic and integrative biblical understanding of caring for creation right alongside the technical aspects of socio-ecological approaches to address environmental challenges. He has had the pleasure of serving both as a faculty member at Au Sable Institute and as a faculty advisor to the Cedarville student environmental organization, Pro Terra Forma - for the beauty of the earth. Each year you will find him teaching introductory and advanced ecology courses, mapping and spatial analysis (GIS), and environmental ethics. His research interests range from biogeography and biogeochemistry to climate change and environmental justice. He and his students can be often found in streams, grasslands, and forests – a good day is being in all three.
Education and Credentials
Ph.D. in Ecology, Colorado State University
M.S. in Environmental Studies, Ohio University
B.S. in Science Education and General Science, Grace College
Scholarly Works
Trace Gas Biogeochemistry in Response to Wildfire and Forest Management in Ponderosa Pine Ecosystems of Colorado (Mark A. Gathany) Faculty Dissertations (2008)
Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Diets Shed Light on Baylisascaris procyonis Roundworm Prevalence (S. Rigley, Matthew Ingle, Mark A. Gathany, et al.) Journal of Ecology & Natural Resources (2017)
DAYCENT Simulations to Test the Influence of Fire Regime and Fire Suppression on Trace Gas Fluxes and Nitrogen Biogeochemistry of Colorado Forests (Mark A. Gathany and Ingrid C. Burke) Forests (2012)
Cutting Away from the Power Grid (Robert Chasnov and Mark Gathany) 118th Annual Conference & Exposition of the American Society for Engineering Education (2011)
Predicting Baylisascaris procyonis Roundworm Prevalence, Presence and Abundance in Raccoons (Procyon lotor) of Southwestern Ohio Using Landscape Features (Matthew E. Ingle, Stephen G. Dunbar, Mark A. Gathany, et al.) International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife (2014)
Favorite places to visit: Our family enjoys traveling to mountains, beaches, and lakes.
Hobbies: Outside of work I enjoy camping, hiking, drinking coffee, eating Twizzlers, and playing/coaching sports. I have developed a mild addiction to disc golf and had the opportunity to help develop a course on our campus along with two others in surrounding communities..
Why I’m at Cedarville: I have chosen to work at Cedarville because of the opportunities that it gives me to pursue academic excellence in my discipline while embracing and spreading the Gospel by living a Christ-filled life.
