Cultural and Environmental Resource Management Program

College of the Sciences
Ellensburg
Fax: 509-963-1047
https://www.cwu.edu/academics/resource-management/

Program Coordinator
Megan Walsh, PhD
Department of Geography
Dean Hall, room 308
509-963-3699
Megan.Walsh@cwu.edu

Professors
Daniel D. Beck, PhD, biological sciences, ecology, behavior, and physiology of reptiles in the Pacific NW, southwestern USA,and western Mexico
John Bowen, PhD, geography, transportation, economic development, quantitative methods, Southeast Asia
Lisa Ely, PhD, geological sciences, fluvial geomorphology, quaternary geology, paleohydrology
Kristina A. Ernest, PhD, biological sciences, community ecology, plant-herbivore interactions, ecology of small animals
Carey Gazis, PhD, geological sciences, geochemistry of fluid-rock interaction in the Earth’s crust
Steven Hackenberger, PhD, anthropology, archaeology, paleoecology, cultural resource management, Columbia Plateau
Daniel Herman, PhD, history, 19th century American West, American Indian history, American cultural history
Robert Hickey, PhD, geography, GIS remote sensing, environment, geology, erosion modeling, Australia
Paul W. James, PhD, biological sciences, fish ecology, stream ecology
Karl Lillquist, PhD, geography, geomorphology, soils, environmental change in arid lands and mountains, airphoto analysis, field methods
Patrick Lubinski, PhD, anthropology, archaeology, cultural resource management, zooarchaeology
Patrick McCutcheon, PhD, anthropology, archaeology, geoarchaeology, cultural resource management
Pamela McMullin-Messier, PhD, demography, collective action, environmental justice, hazards, and gender
Michael Pease, PhD, geography, water resource management, environmental law, resource allocation
Lene Pedersen, PhD, cultural anthropology, ecological, political, and visual anthropology, natural resources, local governance, Southeast Asia, Circumpolar North, East Africa
Lori Sheeran, PhD, anthropology, biological anthropology, primate ecology, China
Megan Walsh, PhD, geography, biogeography, paleoecology, climate change, fire history, natural resource management, Mayan-landscape interactions
Charles Wassell, PhD, economics, mathematical modeling of economic issues with policy implications

Associate Professors
Hope Amason, PhD, tourism studies, urban anthropology, political economy, museum anthropology, sociocultural anthropology
Elvin Delgado, PhD, geography, energy and capitalism, political economy and nature, critical resource geography and political ecology
Jennifer Lipton, PhD, geography, cultural and political ecology, landscape ecology, climate change, geospatial techniques
Rodrigo F. Rentería-Valencia, anthropology, environmental anthropology, linguistic anthropology, semiotics, visual anthropology, ritual and performance theory, indigenous studies.
Craig Revels- cultural-historical geography, landscape, Latin America
Tony Sipic, PhD, economics, environmental economics, political economy, industrial organization

Assistant Professors
Nicole Jastremski, PhD, biological anthropology, forensic anthropology, bioarchaeology, mortuary analysis, paleopathology, taphonomy, identity formation, Ecuador
Sterling Quinn, PhD, Crowd-Sourced mapping and GIS, critical cartography, Latin America, OpenSource

Faculty from other departments participate in the program as graduate committee members.

Cultural and Environmental Resource Management, MS
Program: The program is interdisciplinary, emphasizing understanding of problems encountered in the management of both natural and cultural resources. It includes a basic core of 27 credits in resource management, courses in areas of interest and a specialty track in either natural resource areas (management of land, water, biotic, atmospheric, and energy resources) or cultural resources management (ethnographic and archaeological sites and materials, historic properties, and archives). An internship is recommended. Students must complete at least 60 credits as outlined in an approved course of study filed with the Office of Graduate Studies and Research. The course of study is selected by advisement before completing 25 credits.
Program Admission Requirements: In addition to general master’s degree guidelines for admission to master’s programs, applicants for admission must have the following qualifications:

A solid background in a discipline closely related to the resources they expect to manage. Normally, a bachelor’s degree is required in a technical field such as one of the biological, Earth, or physical sciences, geography, engineering, archaeology, ethnology, history, or architecture. In some cases work experience may be accepted in lieu of a technical major. Before admission, program faculty will evaluate the academic coursework and experience of all applicants for admission, and will recommend remedial course work if, in their judgment, there are deficiencies in pre-baccalaureate work which need to be overcome before entrance into the program.
A high proficiency in written and spoken English as well as potential for post-graduate study and research. Evidence of proficiency and potential may include: GRE scores, samples of previous writing, letters of recommendation, an interview.
A good background in basic statistics (the equivalent of two quarters of undergraduate statistics), knowledge of microeconomic principles, and some knowledge of computer systems (the equivalent of a one-quarter undergraduate course).

Admission to the program and continuation in it may be conditional on the applicant’s satisfactory completion of remedial courses. Such courses will not count toward the program credit requirement but in some cases they may be taken after admission to the program.

Application Deadline and Materials: students must comply with all deadlines and procedures for “applying to CWU” in the graduate admissions section of this catalog.

Additional Information

Graduate Committee: The student will have at least a three-member graduate committee, to be selected in consultation with the program coordinator and the dean of Graduate Studies and Research.

Final Examination: Each candidate must pass a final oral examination on all phases of their program including the thesis and related coursework.

Thesis: Each candidate must successfully complete a thesis that involves original research undertaken within a literature context.

Course Offerings
Frequency of course offering information can be found at the department website: https://www.cwu.edu/academics/resource-management/ or by contacting the department directly.