Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Resolution of Respect: Dr. Carolyn Lee Thomas, 18 January 1948–14 January 2020

2020; Ecological Society of America; Volume: 101; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1002/bes2.1691

2327-6096

Laurie Anderson, Alan R. Berkowitz, Carmen R. Cid, Kenneth M. Klemow, George Middendorf, Teresa Mourad,

Water Quality and Resources Studies

Photo credit: Bob Pohlad. Dr. Carolyn Lee Thomas, aquatic ecologist, undergraduate student mentor, citizen science pioneer, environmental community networker, honored educator, longtime member of the Ecological Society of America (ESA), and cancer warrior, died peacefully on Tuesday, 14 January 2020 in Ferrum, Virginia, where she had worked at Ferrum College as Professor of Environmental Science from 1979 to 2019. Carolyn was born on 18 January 1948 in Orlando, Florida, to the late Dean and Elizabeth Thomas. She is survived by her loving and devoted husband of 45 yr, Dr. Bob Pohlad. She is also survived by son Chris Pohlad-Thomas and his wife Adrienne Capollupo and their two daughters, and son Tim Pohlad-Thomas and his wife Alexandria Moore and their son and daughter. Carolyn received a Bachelor of Science degree from Florida Southern College in 1971, where she majored in Mathematics and minored in Biology. Following graduation, she worked as Research Technologist at the University of Colorado Medical Center, Denver. The ensuing two years were spent at the Adolph Coors Brewery, Golden, CO, where she was Process Control Microbiologist. Post-baccalaureate training in limnology at the University of Central Florida, from 1974 to 75, where Carolyn was Research Assistant, led her to the University of Georgia's graduate program. In 1978, she completed a Master's in Zoology and Ecology under the direction of famed ecologist Eugene P. Odum. Carolyn's Master's Thesis was titled “A microcosm study of the interactions of nutrients and cadmium in aquatic systems.” In the fall of 1978, Carolyn moved to the graduate program at Virginia Tech to pursue a Doctorate in Environmental Sciences and Engineering. There, she worked under the direction of Robert Hoehn. Her dissertation title was “Development of a test system for screening toxic substances: A comparison using organic substances.” The research she conducted for her Master's and PhD developed practical protocols for assessing the impacts of heavy metals and organic compounds on water quality and aquatic ecosystem biodiversity, structure, and function, in both microcosms and at the scale of watersheds. This work led her to develop research collaborations in Virginia and other states, implement citizen research projects that would establish a 30-yr water quality monitoring volunteer network, and create thousands of internship opportunities for undergraduates to develop essential career skills for successful entry into the environmental workforce. Carolyn Thomas’ impact on ecology education began in the Virginia public schools when she was a Physical Science teacher for Franklin County Middle School in 1978. In 1979, she was appointed Assistant Professor of Environmental Sciences and Biology at Ferrum College in Ferrum, Virginia. She subsequently earned tenure and promotion to Associate and then Full Professor at Ferrum. Starting in 1987, Carolyn served as Director of Science Camp and assumed leadership positions at a number of field-oriented facilities, including Smith Mountain Lake Volunteer Monitoring Program, Claytor Lake Volunteer Monitoring Program, the Virginia Department of Health Boater and Marina Education Program, and Appalachian Watershed Studies Research Program. She received the Melvin Johnston Award from the Smith Mountain Lake Association for her work on the water quality project there. She took two sabbaticals: the first at the University of Georgia, and the second at the University of Ulster, Coleraine, Northern Ireland. Photo credit: Bob Pohlad. Carolyn was an active member of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) for the past 31 years. She belonged to the Mid-Atlantic Chapter, as well as the Aquatic Ecology, Education, and Researchers at Undergrad Institution sections. She was Chair of the Education Section (2013–2016) and a member of the Committee for Diversity and Education (2012–2015). She and Bob formed a great team that had a transformative impact on ecology education at the national level. They were regular attendees of ESA's annual meeting, where Carolyn co-organized the Annual Resources for Ecology Education—Fair and Share (REEFS) sessions between 2012 and 2017. REEFS allows ecology educators to share their teaching innovations, and Carolyn worked diligently to ensure that they were well organized and provided a meaningful experience for all attendees. Carolyn also had a significant impact on the development of ESA's Four-Dimensional Ecology Education (4DEE) framework. In recognition of their outstanding work, Carolyn and Bob together received the ESA's Eugene Odum Award for Excellence in Ecology Education in 2016. Carolyn also belonged to the Society for Freshwater Science, North American Lake Management Society, Virginia Academy of Sciences, Virginia Water Quality Council, and Virginia Citizens for Water Quality. Each of those organizations benefitted greatly from her efforts. In 2004, with husband Bob Pohlad, Carolyn received a $220,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to fund the collaboration through Appalachian Watershed Studies (CAWS) project that supported a collaboration of six colleges from the southern Appalachian region. A subsequent $50,000 Mellon Foundation Officer's Grant allowed Carolyn to add four colleges, bringing the consortium to ten primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs). Moreover, during her second sabbatical in 2005, she received a grant from seven municipalities in Ireland to study antibiotic resistance in watersheds located there. Photo credit: Bob Pohlad. Carolyn spent her 40+ yr at Ferrum College working to enhance undergraduate environmental education by providing real-world problem-solving experiences for all students. Her community engagement and networking skills made her a pioneer role model in the area of translational ecology and citizen science. In 2010, she helped found the Ecological Research as Education Network (EREN), a nationwide collaborative network of undergraduate ecology educators from PUIs. EREN's mission is to foster multi-site collaborative research projects to enhance scientific understanding of large-scale environmental processes while engaging undergraduate students in authentic research experiences. The National Science Foundation funded EREN with a Research Coordination Network grant of almost half a million dollars from 2010 to 2016, with Carolyn and Bob as senior personnel on the project on the Leadership Team. EREN continues to be active today in mentoring faculty, enhancing undergraduate student and PUI faculty research collaborations, and facilitating effective training of the environmental workforce. Carolyn, along with colleague Tracy Gartner, spearheaded one of the EREN's first collaborative projects, comparing leaf decomposition between native and invasive plants in both aquatic and terrestrial environments. Carolyn continued to serve as an elected member of EREN's Board of Directors until her passing. Her contributions have been essential to EREN's positive impacts on hundreds of faculty and thousands of students at PUIs. Photo credit: Teresa Mourad. Carolyn was a loving soulmate, wonderful mother, devoted grandma, dedicated teacher, and outstanding colleague who loved the water and made it an integral part of her professional life. She loved to travel and was able to see all 50 states and many different countries with Bob and their sons Chris and Tim. Carolyn's legacy will live on in her family, friends, and all of those students on whose lives she had a major impact. As quoted in the Franklin Post, (VA) article published shortly after her death, Dr. Delia Heck, Thomas’ close friend and chair of the Ferrum College Natural Sciences division, indicated that “her spirit and enthusiasm inspired generations of students to pursue both careers and lifelong personal commitments to protecting and sustaining the world in which we live,” Heck continued, “She was committed to helping students develop the skills and techniques necessary to measure, monitor and analyze environmental data in order to make sound, rational, scientifically-based policy decisions to serve society's greatest good. It was an honor and a privilege to work with her, be mentored and taught by her”1 (available online). Carolyn's inspiration, diverse talents, and networking legacy made it possible for the ESA community to “live long and prosper” for many years to come!