Biography
I grew up in central Illinois and graduated from Calvin in 2005. I moved on to the University of Michigan, where I earned a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology in 2011. After spending a year as a professor at Olivet Nazarene University, I returned to Calvin and joined the Department of Biology in 2012. Outside of academia, I enjoy birding, nature photography, science fiction (especially Star Wars), super heroes, Euro-style tabletop games, rooting for the St. Louis Cardinals and Michigan Wolverines, and exploring local parks with my wife and two sons.
Education
- Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan (2011)
- B.S. in Biology (with honors), Calvin College (2005)
Professional Experience
- Â鶹Çø, Professor of Biology (2025–present)
- Â鶹Çø, Associate Professor of Biology (2019–2025)
- Calvin College, Assistant Professor of Biology (2012–2019)
- Olivet Nazarene University, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences (2011–2012)
Academic Interests
I am interested in comparative anatomy, functional morphology, vertebrate paleontology, and the evolutionary history of mammals (especially aquatic mammals). I mostly teach courses courses related to anatomy and physiology, but I have also co-led off-campus courses in Ecuador, the Galápagos Islands, and New Zealand.
I am also deeply interested in the relationship between science and Christian faith. I have been a speaker for the BioLogos Foundation since 2016 and frequently speak at churches and schools about evolutionary science and Christianity. In addition, I have been a Scholarship and Christianity in Oxford (SCIO) visiting scholar in science and religion and a participant in SCIO's Bridging the Two Cultures of Science and the Humanities II program.
Research
In the past, I have worked on fossil horses and pinnipeds, but most of my research has focused on fossil cetaceans. For my doctoral work, I studied an enigmatic group of fossil whales from the middle Eocene of Pakistan called remingtonocetids. My research focused on their postcranial skeleton and utilized multivariate statistical analyses and three-dimensional multibody dynamic models to test hypotheses of vertebral function. In 2009, I spent two months on a paleontological dig in Egypt, where I helped to excavate the skeletons of fossil whales at Wadi Al-Hitan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Egypt's western desert. I routinely work in research collections at museums, where I study the anatomies of modern mammals to aid in the interpretation of fossil forms.
My current research focuses on the transition from foot-powered to tail-powered swimming in the earliest fossil cetaceans. I am also working on an interdisciplinary project exploring the theological ramifications of pre-human animal death and suffering that are a part of the evolutionary process.
Teaching
In my classes, we focus a lot on details. Whether we are discussing the potential pathways of individual neurons in the sympathetic nervous system, the array of physiological mechanisms that work together to combat a decrease in blood pressure, or the various theological implications of evolutionary theory, I encourage students to resist the urge to oversimplify. The bodies we inhabit are incredibly complex, and so is the world we live in. I push students to honor that complexity by digging into the details, giving them a richer appreciation for how their bodies move, hear, and breathe, but also helping them to see that a deep and nuanced understanding of the world is necessary to cope with many of the complicated issues we are dealing with in the 21st century.
Professional Associations
- American Scientific Affiliation
- Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
Awards
- 2023, American Scientific Affiliation Fellow
- 2020, Â鶹Çø Advising and Mentoring Award
- 2018-2019, Scholarship and Christianity in Oxford (SCIO) visiting scholar in science and religion
- 2017, Calvin College Professor of the Year (presented by Calvin College K4L: Student Alumni Association)
Research and Scholarship
