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| Our Faculty |
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Nancy Gift
Chatham Faculty
Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, Acting Director Rachel Carson Institute
Hometown : Lexington, KY
Joined Chatham : 2005
Academic Areas of Interest
lawn weeds and organic lawn care,
sustainable agriculture,
urban gardening
Personal Areas of Interest
Hiking, gardening, playing outside, biking
Personal Website : Visit Website
Biography
Currently, one student (Tierney Manning) is continuing work on Pittsburgh food deserts, while another (Melissa Guy) is evaluating sage oil as a possible treatment for antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection. Senior tutorial projects recently completed include wetland effects on real estate value (Megan Morrissey), a GIS study on food deserts in Pittsburgh (Jessica Moran), herbicides' developmental effects on a non-target plant (Melissa Tosiano), and a study of seed germination and equine digestion (Dayle Kendall). Past projects include Melanie Tuck's green roof installation and monitoring, Laura Reisinger's GIS study of siting rain gardens by using watershed topography, and Mary Murphy's mathematical model of the energy balance of corn-based ethanol.
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| Education |
| • | Ph.D., Cornell University, Weed Science, 2002, advisor Russ Hahn | | • | M.S., University of Kentucky, Crop Science 1995, advisor Larry Grabau | | • | A.B., Harvard-Radcliffe, Biology 1993, thesis advisor Peter F. Stevens |
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| Publications |
| • | A Weed by any Other Name. May 2009 release, Beacon Press. | | • | Gift, N., R.R. Hahn, and J. Mt Pleasant. 2008. Quackgrass managed as a cover crop in herbicide-resistant silage corn. Weed Biology and Management. | | • | Gift, N. December 2007 “Rachel Carson: Innovator.” Western Pennsylvania History Magazine. | | • | Nancy Gift. Rachel Carson: 100 years young. Next Page. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 27, 2007. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07147/789138-109.stm | | • | N. Gift. March 2008. The Ecology of Birth. Midwifery Today. | | • | Gift, Nancy and Gift, Richard E., "Newspaper-Based Creative Writing as a Teaching Tool" (June 26, 2006). Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=914608 | | • | Gift, N. and M. Krasny. 2003.The great fossil fiasco: teaching about peer review. The American Biology Teacher 65: 270-278. | | • | Gift, N. and P.F. Stevens. 1997. Vagaries in the delimitation of character states in quantitative variation. Systematic Biology 46(1): 112-125. |
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| Certifications |
| • | former certified pesticide applicator, New York |
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| Awards |
| • | A Weed by Any Other Name - NY Sunday Book Review | | • | 3rd place graduate team (with Brad Rauch), Northeast Weeds Contest, Guelph Ontario 2000 |
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| Organizations |
| • | Associate Editor for Agronomy Journal | | • | Member of the Agronomy Society of America (ASA) | | • | Member of ASLE (Literature and Environment) | | • | Member of Garden Club of Allegheny County |
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| Achievements |
| • | Completed Rachel Carson Trail Challenge (34.9 miles, 12 h. 44 min., 274th place), with Kerri LaCharite, June 23, 2007 |
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| Presentations |
| • | "Your Organic Lawn and Garden" Glade Run Spring Symposium, March 2009 | | • | "Alternatives to Home Pesticides" Women's Health and Environment Lecture Series. Carnegie Science Center, April 17, 2008. | | • | "Inspiring imagination and avoiding overdesign in children's play spaces" PAEYC Conference, 2008. | | • | Gift, N. "Rachel Carson and the Freedom Lawn" ASLE Conference, Greenville, SC June 13-15, 2007 | | • | Gift, N. and Mulloy, Brigid. "The Ecology of Birth" Midwifery Today Conference, San Jose, Costa Rica, May 27, 2007 | | • | Home Pesticides: Environmental and Health Concerns. Invited talk for Environmental Health Symposium, Community College of Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, November 9,2007. | | • | Rachel Carson’s Life and Environmental Ethic. Invited talk for Hillcrest Garden Club, Pittsburgh. October 9, 2007 | | • | Freedom for Fall: Pesticides and Lawn Care. The Garden Club of Allegheny County, Ligonier. October 12, 2006 | | • | The Freedom Lawn: Principles of Environmentally Friendly Lawn Care. Fern Hollow Nature Center, Sewickley. March 31, 2007 | | • | Pet-Friendly Lawn Care. Invited talk at Pittsburgh Animal Friends. June 19, 2006. | | • | Organic lawn care. Interviewed by Doug Oster of The Organic Gardener on KDKA radio. Feb. 23, 2007, aired Sunday March 11, 2007. | | • | Moving toward sustainability: reducing herbicide use in field crops. Minnesota Southwest Research and Extension Center, Lamberton, MN. November 13, 2002. |
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Chatham University Environmental Science
Buhl Hall • Woodland Road • Pittsburgh, PA 15232 |
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