Christina Cianfrani
Christina Cianfrani, associate professor of hydrology, focuses on watershed processes approached from an ecological and engineering perspective. Specifically, she explores the effects of urbanization on stream systems and conducts basic geomorphological research relating hydrologic stream characteristics with biotic integrity. She has recently developed a First-Year Integrated Sciences Program with colleague Sarah Hews and is currently working in a research group studying a new building on campus built to the Living Building Challenge, the built environment’s most rigorous performance standard. To conduct these interdisciplinary research projects she partners with local and state agencies, research institutions, non-profit organizations, and private consultants.
Elizabeth Conlisk
Elizabeth Conlisk, professor of public health, has a wide range of public health experience at local, state, national, and international agencies, including the Instituto de Nutricion de Centro America y Panama in Guatemala, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the North Carolina Department of Health. Conlisk came to Hampshire in 2001 and teaches classes in the areas of public health, epidemiology, and statistics. Her research focuses on various topics in cancer prevention, especially cervical cancer screening and tobacco use. She is also the director of the Five College Program in Culture, Health and Science, an interdisciplinary certificate program for students interested in both the socio-political and biologic bases of health.
Megan Dobro
Megan Dobro, assistant professor of human biology, focuses on the structural biology of protein complexes involved in HIV infection and cell division. Her research interests include microbiology, molecular biology, microscopy, and biological illustration/animation. She is also passionate about diversity issues and traveling.
Cynthia Gill
Cynthia Gill, associate professor of physiology, studies neural regulation and connectivity in response to hormonally-mediated environmental cues. Her interests span the areas of human and comparative physiology, neuroscience, endocrinology, herpetology, conservation biology, and behavioral biology. She’s also a triathlete and adventure racer with an interest in exercise physiology.
Sarah Hews
Sarah Hews, assistant professor of mathematics, focuses on applying mathematical techniques to biological and physical systems. This involves building an intuitive understanding of the concepts and computational tools necessary to tackle complex, real world problems. She is a member of the 4 College Biomathematics Consortium and representative to the newly founded Five College Biomathematical Sciences Certificate. She has recently developed a First-Year Integrated Sciences Program with colleague Christina Cianfrani and is currently working in a research group studying a new building on campus built to the Living Building Challenge, the built environment’s most rigorous performance standard.
Seeta Sistla
Seeta Sistla, assistant professor of ecosystems ecology, studies how soils, plants, and microbial communities respond to environmental change, and how these changes can feedback to affect larger-scale ecosystem processes and coupled human-natural systems. She is also interested in improving how scientific knowledge is used in decision-making and conservation efforts.