Science - Staff Directory

Jack Williams, Senior Scientist
329 Crater Lake Avenue
Medford, OR 97501
(541) 772-7724

Jack Williams is the Senior Scientist for TU's national office. Jack started studying fishes in the deserts of the American Southwest, where a native fish has to be tough to survive. He received his B.S. in Wildlife Biology from Arizona State University. He moved on to work at the University of Nevada – Las Vegas, where Jack received his M.S. degree in biology while working on Virgin River fishes. Jack continued his march northward to Oregon State University to receive his Ph.D. in fisheries biology in 1980 working on the taxonomy and ecology of chubs in the Great Basin. After finishing up at OSU, Jack went to work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Endangered Species Office in Sacramento, California. He went on to work for the BLM in Washington, D.C., including the National Fisheries Program Manager for BLM and the Science Advisor to the Director. He later moved back out west and began working for the U.S. Forest Service, including stints as Deputy Forest Supervisor in Idaho and Forest Supervisor in Oregon. Jack joined TU in 2004 to develop the Conservation Success Index and provide technical assistance to TU's restoration and management programs. Whenever possible, Jack can be found walking along some small stream, preferably with his wife, sons, and growing cadre of springer spaniels.

Matt Barney, Senior Programmer
(208) 345-9800

Matt is a Software Developer for TU's national science team. Matt holds a B.S. degree in Computer Science from the University of Idaho. Prior to joining TU, he worked for Spatial Dynamics, delivering custom GIS software solutions and spatial analyses for private and government organizations. During this time he also worked as a consultant on TU's Conservation Success Index, developing the web site, database, and interactive mapping applications. Matt has been a professional software developer since 1989, working with a wide variety of relational databases, programming languages, hardware, and software platforms. Matt enjoys homebrewing, mountain biking, and camping via motorcycle in the woods and deserts around Idaho.

Sabrina Beus, Office Manager, Boise, Idaho, Science and Technology Group
(208) 345-9800

Prior to coming to TU, Sabrina worked at Spatial Dynamics for 11 years. In that time she managed extensive GPS data collection projects, which included team training and oversight, maintained data integrity, integration of data into GIS, and establishing good public relations. In addition to providing GIS and CAD support to various projects, she helped create documentation for a custom program and provided technical support to the users. Sabrina has an Associates Degree in Civil Engineering Technology from Idaho State University School of Applied Technology. She enjoys camping and other outdoor activities with her husband, 2 daughters, and dog. Contact Sabrina Beus Address: 910 Main Street, Suite 342, Boise, ID 83702. (208)345-9800.

Warren Colyer
(435) 753-3132

Warren is the Director of TU's Watershed Restoration program and a member of TU's national science team. Warren received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Washington and a M.S. in Aquatic Ecology from Utah State University. He began working for TU in 2002 as the Field Coordinator for TU's Strategies for Restoring Native Trout Program. In that capacity Warren helped develop and implement a watershed-scale monitoring program to track the success of habitat restoration and reconnection projects to benefit native Lahontan cutthroat trout. In 2005 Warren returned to the Bear River (the site of his graduate research) to initiate the Bear River Native Trout Program. The Bear River project combines applied research with on-the-ground restoration to benefit native Bonneville cutthroat trout, and was one of the first test cases for TU's Conservation Success Index. Warren spends time gardening, angling, and biking during the few months of the year when there isn't enough snow in Utah to ski.

Dan Dauwalter, Fisheries Research Specialist
(208) 345-9800

Dan works on many projects related to native and wild trout and application of the Conservation Success Index. Before coming to TU in 2008, Dan was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Wyoming where he worked with the U.S. Forest Service to develop long-term monitoring plans for fishes on national forests. He has a Ph.D. from Oklahoma State University where he studied how aquatic habitats influence fish assemblages and smallmouth bass populations. Dan has a Master of Science degree in Aquaculture/Fisheries from the University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff and a Bachelor of Arts from Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota. Dan, along with his wife Stacey, enjoys hiking, biking, skiing, and also floating and fishing America's streams and rivers.

Kurt Fesenmyer, GIS Specialist
(208)345-9800

Kurt works on a variety of conservation planning and prioritization projects, including the Conservation Success Index. Kurt received Master of Environmental Management and Master of Forestry degrees from Duke University. Prior to joining TU in 2008, Kurt worked for USGS as a wildlife biologist studying the habitats and birds of western shrubland ecosystems. He enjoys vegetable gardening and exploring the west by foot, boat, bike, and skis.

Amy Haak, Resource Information Director
(208) 345-9800

Amy is primarily involved with development of the analytical side of the Conservation Success Index and its integration with TU's conservation programs. She has three degrees in Geography: a BA from Dartmouth College, and an MS and Ph.D. from University of Idaho where she focused on conservation biology and political ecology. Prior to coming on staff with TU in 2006, Amy worked as a contractor for six years providing GIS services and analytical support to TU's Public Land Initiative through Conservation Geography, a non-profit corporation she founded in 1996. In 1996 Amy was also a founding partner in Spatial Dynamics, a for-profit consulting business specializing in providing geo-spatial solutions to natural resource issues. Amy has lived in Boise, Idaho since 1984 where she has been actively involved in local, state, and regional conservation work as Executive Director of Conservation Geography and as a volunteer board member of numerous conservation organizations. Whenever possible she enjoys exploring Idaho's public lands from her whitewater canoe, skis, or mountain bike, accompanied by her black lab Pearl and assorted friends.

Dave Kumlien, Executive Director, Whirling Disease Foundation
(406) 585-0860

Born in Janesville, Wisconsin, Dave graduated in 1972 from Macalester College in St. Paul Minnesota with a BA in Political Science. After moving to Bozeman, Montana in 1973, he opened Wild Wings Orvis Shop, Bozeman's first fly-fishing specialty shop, and operated the successful fly shop and guide service for 20 years. Long active in outfitter and conservation issues, Dave was a founding director and the first President of Montana's fishing outfitter organization, Fishing Outfitters Association of Montana (FOAM), and has served on the Board of Directors of the Madison-Gallatin Chapter of Trout Unlimited. In response to the discovery of whirling disease in Montana's Madison River, Dave helped found the Whirling Disease Foundation. Following the sale of his fly fishing shop, Montana Troutfitters, he began part-time work as Development Director for WDF and was hired as the full-time Development Director in 1999. In 2001, he was promoted to Executive Director, and in October of 2001, Dave received the prestigious Outdoor Life Magazine Conservation Award recognizing his conservation work and the accomplishments of the Whirling Disease Foundation. The Outdoor Life award, established in 1923, includes a list of notable conservationists including Aldo Leopold and President Jimmy Carter. Dave shared the 2001 award with public sector winner Governor John Kitzhaber of Oregon. Dave, his wife Karyn and two sons, Kristopher and Kevin live in Bozeman.

Matthew Mayfield, GIS Analyst
(208) 345-9800

Matthew works on the Conservation Success Index, as well as provides GIS support for TU's other programs including the Public Land Initiative, Backcountry applications, and the Western Water Project. He received a B.S. in Geography at Appalachian State University, and prior to joining TU he worked for Conservation Geography, providing GIS support for Idaho's non-profit conservation community. Matthew enjoys spending his free time mountain biking, snowboarding, watching football, and cooking.

Helen Neville, Research Scientist
(208) 345-9800

Helen is the Research Scientist and works on a broad array of science-based projects as part of our national science team, ranging from research on non-native fish invasions, to the conservation genetics of important native fisheries, to assisting with the development of TU's Conservation Success Index and its application to climate change and other conservation needs. She is also our TU/BLM Program Coordinator, overseeing our restoration work on Lahontan cutthroat trout as well as our on-going cooperative agreement with the Bureau of Land Management. Before coming to TU in 2006 Helen worked for several years with the US Forest Service's Boise Aquatics Lab completing several genetic studies on Chinook salmon and native rainbow trout in Idaho. She has a Ph.D. from the University of Nevada, Reno on the population genetics of Lahontan cutthroat trout, a Masters degree from the University of California, San Diego, and a Biology degree from Brown University. She and her husband Frank and their daughter Sadie have just welcomed the latest (and last) addition to their family, their daughter Luna. Hopefully soon they'll emerge from the deep and get back out to explore more of great wild Idaho on bikes and skis.

Seth Wenger, Staff Scientist
(208)373-4386

Seth primarily studies potential effects of climate change on native and invasive trout in the Western US. His position is supported jointly by TU and the Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station's Boise Aquatic Sciences Lab, where he is based. Seth holds MS and PhD degrees in Ecology from the University of Georgia and undergraduate degrees from Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania. Before joining TU he served as the Associate Director of the University of Georgia's River Basin Center. His other areas of research include effects of urbanization on streams, methods for assessing and modeling animal populations, conservation planning, and aquatic resource management policy.

John Zablocki, Lahontan Coordinator/Biologist
(775) 530-5705

John is based in Reno, NV, where he coordinates TU's Lahontan cutthroat trout recovery initiative. He holds a B.S. in Chemistry and a B.A. in Spanish from the University of Montana, and an MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management from Oxford University, UK. Prior to joining TU, John worked as marine fisheries observer in the Pacific and served a year as a Fulbright Scholar to Slovenia, where he worked on the conservation and biology of Slovenian marble trout. Since then he has continued to be involved in trout conservation in the Balkan region. John enjoys fishing, hiking, and anything outdoor related.