Seminars

Hood College Department of Biology Seminar Series

2026 Seminar

Unless noted, seminars are held from 1:00-2:00 pm (EST) via Zoom or in-person.

Open to all Hood undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, and staff.

If you have any questions, contact Dr. Yanting Guo (guo@hood.edu) or Dr. Robert Kambic (kambic@hood.edu)

Join us via Zoom here: Seminars' Zoom

Tuesday, September 15 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Tim Zastrow
Consulting Arborist - Frederick County Forestry Board
Can You Be a Tree Detective?
No matter where you spend time among trees, in your own neighborhood or a local park or forest, you probably know that trees are better off when they are healthy and functioning well in the ecosystem. So, how can you tell when a tree is healthy? Or when it is not? Join experienced arborist Tim Zastrow to become a tree detective — with a closer look at some of the signs and symptoms of tree distress that you might observe. Learn the primary issues facing our mid-Atlantic forests and what you can do to help.
After the presentation, come along with Tim, and Frederick City’s Superintendent of Urban Forestry Josh Dunk, for a walk among the trees on the beautiful Hood College campus to practice your newly acquired detective skills.
Watch it again: Tim Zastrow's presentation
Thursday, October 1 | HT 131- 1:00 PM
Lemir Teron
Associate Professor, Howard University, Department of Earth, Environment and Equity
Unlearn Power: Reshaping Our Environmental Agenda
Lemir Teron is an associate professor at Howard University in the Department of Earth, Environment and Equity. He holds a PhD in Energy & Environmental Policy from the University of Delaware and completed a NOAA funded postdoc at Florida A&M University, where he also taught at the College of Law.
His work is committed to advancing public science and environmental justice, with research interests that include environmental health, energy policy and community forestry.
Tuesday, November 10 | HT 131- 1:00 PM
Randy Koster
Former Research Scientist, NASA, Global Modeling and Assimilation Office
Climate and Vegetation
We all know that climate affects vegetation – you won’t find forests, for example, in dry areas like deserts. Vegetation, though, affects climate right back, helping to determine how the Earth absorbs solar energy and how rainwater is returned to the atmosphere through evapotranspiration. In this seminar I give a broad-brush picture of vegetation-climate connections and describe how the climate scientists who develop global Earth system models – those models that predict weather and examine the potential for climate change – include vegetation effects in their work.
About the speaker
Before retiring last year, Randal Koster spent decades working at the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center on climate-related problems, particularly those focused on land processes and how they feed back on weather and climate. He is a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the American Meteorological Society and has been inducted into the National Academy of Engineering.

Thursday, February 5 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Bradley Hill
CEO, Comust Sustainable Pozzolan Products, LLC
Tuesday, February 10 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Dr. Eric Annis
Hood College
Watch it again: Panopto Video - Feb. 10
Tuesday, March 5 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Weston Slaughter
UMD, College Park
Friday, April 3 | HT 236 - 10:00 AM
Sophia Smith's Master's Thesis Presentation: Methods and Insect Order Diversity Comparison of V-FIT and Traditional Passive Traps
Hood College
Monday, April 6 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Ellie Welsh's Master's Thesis Presentation: Investigating Facilitative Interactions of Native Marsh Plants under Elevated Salinity Stress
Hood College
Join via Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/99011201313?pwd=UhGEDkvuW0sNK66VmJABmDWE6TTQTP.1
Tuesday, April 14 | HT 131 - 1:00 PM
Dr. Andrew Landsman
C&O Canal National Historical Park

Thursday, September 25 - HT 131
Pablo Lo Moro, MSc, MBA
Geneva Business School
Watch it again: Panopto V ideo - Sept. 25
Thursday, October 16 - HT 131
Rob Schnabel
Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Watch it again: Panopto Video - Oct. 16
Tuesday, October 21 - HT 131
Biology Faculty Research Presentation
Watch it again: Panopto Video - Oct. 21

Date	Where?	Who and what?	Watch it again
March 6, Thursday	HT 236	Dr. Keryn Gedan, The George Washington University	Panopto 03/06/25
March 18, Tuesday	HT 131	Dr. Aaztli Coria, National Institutes of Health / National Cancer Institute	Panopto 03/18/25
March 25, Tuesday	HT 131	Pablo Lo Moro, MSc, MBA. Geneva Business School	Panopto 03/25/25
April 8, Tuesday	HT 131	Dr. Kari Taylor-Burt, Mt. St. Mary's University	Panopto 04/08/25
April 17, Thursday	HT 131	TBA

Seminars

Department of Biology

2026 Seminar

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