Who is Rural Confluence?
The Rural Confluence team hails from five institutions across three states in the Mississippi River Basin. The team unites Oklahoma State University’s Rural Renewal Initiative, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Rural Prosperity Nebraska and National Drought Mitigation Center, and Louisiana State University’s extensive expertise working with rural coastal communities. The team also includes faculty in rural, minority serving institutions (MSIs) in Oklahoma: Western Oklahoma State College and Northern Oklahoma College.
Our team brings a wealth of knowledge across disciplines. Rural Confluence also combines unique resources, backgrounds, and experiences, including NSF-funded Oklahoma Meso-Scale Integrated Sociogeographic Network data, statewide climate monitoring networks like the Oklahoma Mesonet, the NDMC’s Drought Impact Reporter, and Louisiana’s Coastal Reference Monitoring System. This project also unites, for the first time, highly successful student summer research and service programs at OSU (Rural Scholars), UNL (Rural Fellows), and LSU (Gulf Scholars) and launches similar programs in two rural MSI community colleges serving Native Americans and Hispanics.
Each member of the Rural Confluence team is listed below. The team has four segments: the research team, the external evaluation team, the administrative and support team, and the focus communities.
OSU Research Team:
Dr. Jia Yang, Assistant Professor in Natural Resource Ecology and Management
Dr. Audrey E. H. King, Assistant Professor in Agricultural Communications
Dr. Tyson Ochsner, Regents Professor in Plant and Soil Sciences
Dr. Shane Robinson, Professor in Agricultural Education and Department Head of Agricultural Education, Communications and Leadership
Dr. Amy Hagerman, Associate Professor in Agricultural Economics
Katie Honeyman, PhD candidate, Agricultural Education
Alonzo Hernández, master’s student, Natural Resource Ecology and Management
Arturo Flores Godoy, PhD student, Applied Soil Physics
Andrew Dilley, PhD student, Agricultural Economics
Natalie Money, PhD student, Agricultural Education
Dr. Lei Qiao, postdoc, Natural Resource Ecology and Management
UNL Research Team:
Dr. Mary Emery, Rural Prosperity Nebraska Director and Professor of Agricultural Leadership.
Dr. Deborah Bathke, Research Associate Professor and Nebraska's State Climatologist.
Dr. Tonya Haigh, Research Assistant Professor and Social Science Coordinator and Project Coordinator for the NDMC.
Rachel Williss is a master’s student working under Dr. Haigh.
Dr. Raquel Taylor is a postdoc working with Dr. Emery.
Dr. Daniel Adama is also a postdoc working with Dr. Emery.
LSU Research Team:
Dr. Linda Hooper-Bui is a Professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences.
Dr. Rebeca de Jesús Crespo is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences.
Sharmin Siddika is a master’s student in Environmental Sciences.
Kashif Rustamani is a PhD candidate in Cultural Anthropology.
Volodymyr Mihunov is a postdoc in Environmental Sciences.
Taherunnesa Rahi is a recent master’s graduate in Environmental Sciences.
Dr. Nina Lam is an Environmental Sciences Professor Emeritus and E. L. Abraham Distinguished Professor of Louisiana Environmental Studies. Dr. Lam joined the project at its start, but has retired and is no longer an active member of the Rural Confluence team.
Western Oklahoma State College Research Team:
Dr. David Goodman, Science Instructor
Dr. Jennifer Hammack, Agriculture Instructor and Agriculture, Child Development and Nursing Division Director
Northern Oklahoma College Research Team:
Dr. Frankie Wood-Black, Division Chair, Engineering, Physical Science, and Process Technology
Dr. Brady Kohler, Instructor, Physical Science
External Evaluation Team:
Shelby Hunt, MPH, AT-Ret, is a research and evaluation associate with a focus on strategic communication and community engagement.
Ian Cumming, MA, is a research and evaluation associate with a focus on organizational culture and long-term planning.
Dr. Mukesh Bhattarai is a research and evaluation assistant drawn to projects that incorporate environmental dimensions or address sustainability-related challenges.
Administrative and Support Team:
Dr. David Shideler is the Project Manager. He keeps Rural Confluence organized and ensures everything runs smoothly. Dr. Shideler is an economist by trade, with a special focus on rural and small-town economics and vitality.
Laney Reasner, MS, supports Rural Confluence through science communications and outreach.
Focus Communities
Jackson County, Oklahoma
Niobrara, Nebraska
Five-Finger Bayou, Louisiana
North Central (Grant and Kay Counties), Oklahoma
Together, community members and faculty and staff from across the Mississippi River Basin combine unique experiences, skill sets, and backgrounds to co-develop climate-resilient solutions for the focus communities and beyond.
Interested in contacting one of our team members? Check out our team page or fill out our contact form and we will put you in touch!