Authors and Contributors

Cherie Aukland, GISP, is an Associate Professor of Information Systems and Program Head for Geographic Information Systems at Virginia Peninsula Community College in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is a member of the VirginiaView consortium. A computer scientist by academic preparation, she has broad professional interests that recently include the use of drones in the geospatial world, and she serves as Co-PI for the Geospatial Technician Education for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (GeoTEd-UAS) project supported by NSF-ATE.  Cherie enjoys nature, whether in her garden or backpacking to remote places in the mountains.

John A. McGee, Ph.D., is a Professor and Geospatial Extension Specialist in the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation at Virginia Tech. John has led the Geospatial Extension Program for ~20 years. Through this role, he provides workforce development opportunities to an array of stakeholders, including local, regional, state, and federal government employees, the private sector, non-profit groups, and educators (including K-12, 2-year college, and college/university faculty and staff). John serves as the PI and coordinator of VirginiaView, serves on the AmericaView Board of Directors, and is a Co-PI for the Geospatial Technician Education for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (GeoTEd-UAS) project. John enjoys hiking, sailing, and traveling ‘off grid’.

Tammy Parece, Ph.D. is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography at The Ohio State University. Tammy teaches remote sensing and GIS courses. She holds an MS in Geography and a Ph.D. in Geospatial and Environmental Analysis from Virginia Tech. In the past, she taught traditional geography courses and GIS at Colorado Mesa University and has acted as a VirginiaView instructor in geospatial technologies for professionals, K-12 teachers, and students. She has written several instructional manuals for GIS and remote sensing and includes proprietary and open-source software.