Leadership

Myron Floyd
Dean
mffloyd@ncsu.edu
919-515-3675

Myron Floyd joined the college in 2005 as a professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management. In 2010, Myron served as director of Graduate Programs for the department, and in 2014, he became department head. His research interests lie in physical activity and the built environment, health disparities, race/ethnicity and leisure activity preferences, environmental justice and the health benefits of urban green space. He holds a B.S. in Recreation and Park Administration, an M.S. in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management and a Ph.D. in Recreation and Resources Development with a specialization in Natural Resource Sociology from Texas A&M University.

Robert Bardon
Associate Dean for Extension, Department Extension Leader and Professor of Forestry and Environmental Resources
rebardon@ncsu.edu
919-515-5575

Robert Bardon joined the college in 1996 as an assistant professor and Extension specialist in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. Since 2007, Robert has served in several leadership positions within the college, including as departmental Extension leader and associate dean of Extension. Robert is a member of NC State’s Academy of Outstanding Faculty Engaged in Extension, a certified forester with the Society of American Foresters and a North Carolina Registered Forester. He holds a B.S. in Forest Resource Management, an M.S. in Forest Administration and Management and a Ph.D. in Forest Biology-Wood Science from Iowa State University.

Sarah Corica
Director of Marketing and Communications
secorica@ncsu.edu
919-513-4644

Sarah Corica joined the College of Natural Resources as director of marketing and communications in 2014. In her role, she develops and oversees the implementation of marketing, web, social media and content strategy. Prior to joining the college, Sarah served as assistant director of development communications in NC State’s Office of Development Communications and Donor Relations and managed communications and marketing at a nonprofit supporting early childhood education. She earned a B.A. in Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Joshua Gira
Director of Information and Instructional Technology and Operations
jjgira@ncsu.edu
919-515-8846

Joshua Gira joined the college in 2002 as a computer consultant. Since becoming director of Information and Instructional Technology and Operations in 2018, Gira has led multiple projects and initiatives that have yielded new LED lighting across three of the College’s buildings, composting across five of the College’s buildings, multiple classroom and research lab upgrades, two major bathroom renovations to address ADA needs, and improved network and Wi-Fi connectivity to two forest sites that serve as classrooms. He holds a B.A. in Industrial Relations from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Shane Jarvis
Assistant Dean for Finance and Business
sjjarvis@ncsu.edu
919-513-1253

Shane Jarvis joined the College of Natural Resources in September 2016 as the College’s business officer, and was hired as the assistant dean for Finance and Business in August 2017. Prior to her time in the college, Shane worked for more than 13 years in the Wilson College of Textiles in various department and college administrative and fiscal positions. She holds a B.S. in Housing, Interior Design and Resource Management, with a concentration in Consumer Studies, from Virginia Tech.

Rasul Mowatt
Professor and Department Head
rasul_mowatt@ncsu.edu
919-427-3586

Rasul Mowatt joined the college in 2021 as a professor and head of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management. His focal areas are social justice, leisure behavior, cultural studies and critical pedagogy. Rasul is the former chair of the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism Studies (now Health and Wellness Design) in the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington. He earned a Ph.D. in Leisure Behavior, a M.S. in Park and Natural Resource Management and a B.S. in History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Ross Meentemeyer
Goodnight Distinguished Professor of Geospatial Analytics
rkmeente@ncsu.edu

Ross Meentemeyer joined the college in 2013 as director of the Center for Geospatial Analytics, professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources and foundational member of the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program’s geospatial analytics faculty cluster. Ross’s research interests lie in Geospatial analytics, ecological forecasting, biological invasions, forest health and landscape change. From 2016 to 2018, Ross served as president of the US-International Association of Landscape Ecology, which expanded to become IALE-North America under his leadership. He received his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Stacy Nelson
Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, Professor of Forestry and Environmental Resources
sanelso2@ncsu.edu
919-513-7162

Stacy Nelson joined the college in 2002 as a professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources; the Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Science program and the Center for Geospatial Analytics. Stacy’s research interests lie in applying geospatial and statistical techniques in the assessment of landscape, habitat and ecosystem spatial problems. He holds a B.S. in Biology from Jackson State University, an M.A. in Marine Sciences from the College of William and Mary’s Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences and a Ph.D. in Fisheries and Wildlife from Michigan State University.

Melissa Pasquinelli
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Professor of Forest Biomaterials
mpasqui@ncsu.edu
919-515-9426

Melissa Pasquinelli joined the college in 2019 as a professor in the Department of Forest Biomaterials. Melissa’s research interests lie in creating molecular modeling strategies to design sustainable materials and to understand processes such as degradation, biomass conversion, and selective chemical capture. She was previously a faculty member in the College of Textiles in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry, and Science, where she served from 2016 to 2019 as associate head and director of graduate programs, and in 2012 to 2016 as an accreditation coordinator. She holds a B.S. in Chemistry from Seton Hill College and a Ph.D. in Chemistry with a specialization in Theoretical Physical Chemistry from Carnegie Mellon University.

Jennifer Piercy
Assistant Dean for Philanthropy
jennifer_piercy@ncsu.edu
919-513-2687

Jennifer currently serves as Assistant Dean for College Advancement and President of the NC State Natural Resources Foundation. As Executive Director of the Pulp and Paper Advisory Board and Director of Undergraduate Student Recruiting, Retention and Development in the Department of Forest Biomaterials, Jennifer brings ten years of board management, fundraising, alumni relations, communications, leadership and management experience to this position. After graduating from NC State with degrees in pulp and paper technology and chemical engineering, Jennifer joined Procter and Gamble as a process engineer, machine manager and operations manager. She also worked for the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business in the MBA Career Services Center.

Erin Sills
Professor and Department Head
sills@ncsu.edu
919-515-7784

Erin Sills joined the college in 1997 as an instructor and director of international programs in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. Erin’s research interests lie in the economics of multiple-use forest management, modeling the behavior of households who own and use forests and evaluating the causal impacts of conservation policies on forests and people. In 2019, she became associate head and then head of the department. She received her B.A. from the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, and her M.A. and Ph.D. from the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University.

Robert Scheller
Associate Dean for Research, Professor of Forestry and Environmental Resources

rschell@ncsu.edu
919-513-3973

Robert Scheller is the Associate Dean for Research. His research interests involve using geospatial analytics to examine long-term landscape health, specifically with regards to climate change and human activities, management and values. His interests also include participatory GIS with stakeholders and using visualization tools to support decision-making. Robert holds a B.S. in Biology from the University of Minnesota-Duluth and a Ph.D in Forest Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Jingxin Wang
Head of the Department of Forest Biomaterials
ksaul@ncsu.edu
(919) 515-1273

Jingxin Wang joined the college in 2024 as the new head of the Department of Forest Biomaterials. Jingxin, who is a former Benedum Distinguished Scholar and Davis Michael Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources at West Virginia University, brings over 15 years of leadership in forestry, sustainable biomaterials, and bioenergy. He played a pivotal role in the accreditation of WVU’s forestry programs and developed a strong STEM research program in forest biomaterials and biomass R&D. He is a recognized expert in biomass energy, bioproducts, and forest carbon management and has authored 200 peer-reviewed papers and 12 book chapters. He holds degrees in forest/mechanical engineering from Jilin Forestry College and Northeast Forestry University, a M.S. in computer science from WVU, and a Ph.D. in forest resource management from the University of Georgia.