Megan Jones
Hometown: Redmond, OR
Fall 2009- Summer 2017
Currently Resides In: Boulder, CO
PhD in Ecology & Evolution (Biological Science), MS in College Science Teaching
Current Job/Occupation
Staff Scientist/Science Educator with the National Ecological Observatory Network.
I create and manage educational resources that provide data skills training for researchers, graduate students, and undergraduate students to work with large ecological data sets. For more information please see www.neonscience.org/neondataskills
Educational/Professional Background
Megan A. Jones creates, provide, and manage resources for NEON users to be able to better incorporate NEON data and infrastructure into their research and teaching. Primary responsibilities include creating NEON data skills tutorials for online delivery; organizing and teaching workshop on using NEON data; and leading professional development programming for faculty to create and implement data-centric teaching modules. Megan also co-manages the NEON Assignable Assets program that allows Principal Investigators to untilize NEON infrastructure in their research. In addition, Megan leads the Breeding Landbird Technical Working Group. Megan has always seen a connection between nature, science, and education. She is passionate about sparking curiosity and fostering learning in students of all ages, with her work here at NEON focused on undergraduates, graduate students, and early career professionals.
Megan earned a BSc in Wildlife Biology at Humboldt State University prior to going to Florida State University where she earned a MSc in College Science Teaching and a PhD in Biological Science with a focus on evolutionary behavioral ecology. Her dissertation research focused on evolutionary fitness consequences of cooperative courtship displays in the neotropical avian family Pipridae (manakins). Megan has a strong background in ecological fieldwork, particularly with birds, in both temperate and tropical ecosystems ranging from Alaskan tundra to the Australian bush to Ecuadorian cloud forest. For her, science, education, and natural history are not only a career but also a passion.