Geology Faculty Information

STEVE "BARABOO" BALLOU
Geology Technician
BS, Beloit College
ballous@beloit.edu

Steve declared his geology major in 1973 at U.W. Madison, and completed his degree from Beloit in1999. His interests include Devil's Lake, the Baraboo Range, Turtle Creek nodules, and any place with rocks.

Steve lives in Beloit township and worked for over 20 years as a firefighter and paramedic in Janesville. He enjoys many outdoor activites and shares these interests with his wife Lanaya and their two children, Jasmine and Hilary.

Classes
Geology 100 Lab - Principles of Geology
Geology 105 Lab - Evolution of the Earth
Geology 110 Lab - Environmental Geology and Geologic Hazards
Geology 171 - Field Excursion Seminar

Publications
Skeletal Stromatolitic Nodules in Turtle Creek, Southeastern Wisconsin: Factors Affecting their Formation and Distribution - Abstract prublished in GSA Abstracts with Programs, Vol 31, No. 5, April 1999

top

CAROL "MALTHA" MANKIEWICZ
Professor
BS, MS, UCLA; PhD, UW-Madison
phone: 608-363-2371, fax: 608-363-2052
mankiewi@beloit.edu
http://www.beloit.edu/biology/mankiewicz/mankiewicz_home.html

Before earning her Ph.D, Carol worked two years for the Conservation Division of the U.S. Geological Survey. She joined the faculty on a part-time basis in 1989, and on a full-time basis in 1993. Her teaching interests include sedimentology and, reflecting her joint appointment in the Biology Department, marine and environmental biology. Her research interests include the ecology and paleoecology of reef algae, calcareous algae, and fossil and modern reefs. Other scientific interests include environmental science, K-12 science education, and watershed studies.

Carol enjoys traveling, hiking, biking, and sewing. She lives in Beloit with her husband Carl Mendelson, their son Aaron, and their cats Deja and Vu.

Classes
Geology 230 - Sedimentology
Geology 380/381 - Departmental Seminar
Biology 151 - Marine Biology
Biology 206 - Environmental Biology
Biology 207 - Natural History of South America

Publications and more information about Carol and her research can be found at her website: http://www.beloit.edu/biology/mankiewicz/mankiewicz_home.html

top

CARL V. "MUDSTONE" MENDELSON
Professor and Chair
Solem Professor of the Natural Sciences
AB, PhD, UCLA
phone: 608-363-2223, fax: 608-363-2052
mendelsn@beloit.edu

Carl joined the Beloit College faculty in 1981, and is the chair of the department. In other words, he is the recipient of all problems. Carl's teaching interests include paleontology, the physical and biological history of Earth, dinosaurs (all aspects), women in science, environmental issues, and the history of geology. His research interests include the early evolution of life, the earliest phases of evolution as evidenced in microfossils preserved in chert, microfossils in general, especially across the Proterozoic-Cambrian boundary, evolutionary history of an enigmatic group of microfossils known as acritarchs, and exobiology (potential for life on Mars and beyond).

Carl enjoys traveling and hiking; he is also an avid stamp collector and chocolate eater. He lives in Beloit with his wife Carol Mankiewicz, their son Aaron, and their cats Deja and Vu.

Classes
Geology 105 - Evolution of the Earth
Geology 171 - Field Excursion Seminar
Geology 210 - Paleontology
Geology 215 - Geologic Field Methods
Geology 331 - Stratigraphy
Geology 380/381 - Departmental Seminar
IDST, FYI - Reconstructing and Deconstructing Dinosaurs
IDST, Women's Studies - Women, Feminism, and Science
FYI - Colonizing Mars
IDST - The Challenge of Global Change

Publications

Mendelson, C.V., and Schopf, J.W., 1982, Proterozoic microfossils from the Sukhaya Tunguska, Shorikha, and Yudoma Formations of the Siberian Platform, USSR: Journal of Paleontology, v. 56, p. 42-83.

Mendelson, C.V., 1991, Constructional morphology and exaptation as perspectives for a term project in paleontology: Journal of Geological Education, v. 39, p. 213-216.

Mendelson, C.V., Bauld, J., Horodyski, R.J., Lipps, J.H., Moore, T.B., and Schopf, J.W., 1992, Proterozoic and selected Early Cambrian microfossils: prokaryotes and protists, in Schopf, J.W., and Klein, C., eds., The Proterozoic biosphere: a multidisciplinary study: Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, p. 175-244.

Mendelson, C.V., 1993, Acritarchs and prasinophytes, in Lipps, J.H., ed., Fossil prokaryotes and protists: Boston, Blackwell Scientific, p. 77-104.

Mankiewicz, C., and Mendelson, C.V., 1993, Trace fossils, in Stover, S.G., and Macdonald, R.H., eds., On the rocks: earth science activities for grades 1-8: Tulsa, SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology), p. 99-101.

Mendelson, Carl V., and Mankiewicz, C., compilers, 2000, Thirteenth Keck Research Symposium in Geology Proceedings [Whitman College]: Walla Walla, Wash., XXX p.

top

JAMES "ROUGEMONTITE" ROUGVIE
Assistant Professor
BS, University of Iowa; MA, PhD, University of Texas-Austin
phone: 608-363-2268, fax: 608-363-2052
rougviej@beloit.edu

Jim came to Beloit College in 2002, from the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution, where he was a Post Doctoral Fellow. Jim's research incorporates petrology and geochemistry to learn about the role of fluids in the Earth's crust in both metamorphic and low-T environments.

Jim lives in Beloit with his wife, Brenda, their sons, Eamonn and Alexander, and their two cats, Milo and Bunny.

Classes
Geology 100 - Principles of Geology
Geology 171 - Field Excursion Seminar
Geology 200 - Mineralogy
Geology 215 - Field Geology
Geology 325 - Tectonics
Geology 380/381 - Departmental Seminar

Publications
Coming soon!

top

SUSAN K. "SVERIGEITE" SWANSON
Associate Professor
Peterson Junior Professor of the Sciences
BA (Geology), Gustavus Adolphus College; MS (Geology), MS (Water Resources Management), PhD (Hydrogeology), University of Wisconsin-Madison
phone: 608-363-2132, fax: 608-363-2052
swansons@beloit.edu
http://geology.beloit.edu/swanson

Before earning her PhD, Sue worked in the environmental consulting industry and as a project assistant at the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey. She also spent two years in the Peace Corps teaching high school math and science in Lesotho, southern Africa. Her research interests include wetlands hydrogeology, spring flow, and heterogeneities in sedimentary bedrock aquifers. She also has interests in the effects of urbanization on surface water and groundwater resources.

Sue enjoys gardening and hiking, and she lives in Beloit with her husband, Steve Vavrus, cat, Desmond, and dog, Penny.

Classes
Geology 110 - Environmental Geology and Geologic Hazards
Geology 171 - Field Excursion Seminar
Geology 215 - Field Geology
Geology 220 - Structural Geology
Geology 235 - Geomorphology
Geology 240 - Hydrogeology
Geology 380/381 - Departmental Seminar
ENVS 258 - Interdisciplinary Applications of GIS
FYI - Water Wars; Water Scarcity

Publications and more information about Sue and her research can be found at her website: http://geology.beloit.edu/swanson

top

STEPHEN J. "VARVED" VAVRUS
Visiting Research Associate
BS, Purdue; MS, PhD, UW-Madison
phone: 608-363-2227
sjvavrus@facstaff.wisc.edu

Steve is employed as a research meteorologist/climatologist at the University of Wisconsin's Center for Climatic Research (CCR) [http://ccr.meteor.wisc.edu]. His scientific interests include the atmosphere, oceans and ice cover, especially how they interact with one another. Steve uses numerical models to conduct research on paleoclimates, polar climates, and climatic variability, including studies of future climate change.

Steve enjoys bicycling, running, and various spectator sports. He lives in Beloit with his wife, Sue Swanson, and their cat, Desmond.

Publications
Vavrus, S., 2001: A comparison of feedback processes in the Arctic during past and future warm climates. The Sixth Conference on Polar Meteorology and Oceanography, American Meteorological Society (Preprints).

Vavrus, S., and Z. Liu, 2001: Understanding the response of the tropical atmosphere-ocean system to increased CO2 using Equilibrium Asynchronous Coupling. Climate Dynamics, accepted.

Vavrus, S., and J. E. Kutzbach, 2001: The impact of mountain uplift on the thermohaline circulation: implications for warm paleoclimates. In preparation.

Vavrus, S. J., 1999: The response of the coupled Arctic sea ice-atmosphere system to orbital forcing and ice motion at 6 ka and 115 ka BP. Journal of Climate, 12, 873-896.

Vavrus, S. J., R. H. Wynne, and J. A. Foley, 1996: The sensitivity of southern Wisconsin lake ice to climate variations and lake depth using a numerical model. Limnology and Oceanography., 41 (5), 822-831.

top

RICHARD C. "STRONTIUM" STENSTROM
Professor Emeritus
BS, Beloit College; MS, PhD, University of Chicago
phone: 608-363-2289, fax: 608-363-2052
stenstrom@beloit.edu

Dick joined the faculty in 1965 and has been an emeritus faculty member since 2001. His teaching interests included deformation of rocks, environmental geology, hydrology, geophysics, remote sensing, and computers in geology. His research interests include hydrology of local rivers and environmental geology. Among other interests are travel, photography, and finding out how things work.

Dick lives in Beloit with his wife Gina (who has baked countless cakes for Geology Club festivities and has taught Spanish at Milton College and U. Rock).

Publications

Smith, J.V., and Stenstrom, R.C., 1965, Electron-excited luminescence as a petrologic tool: Journal of Geology, V. 73, p. 627-635.

Stenstrom, R.C., 1970, Environmental preservation with geologic planning: Environ Magazine, v. 1, no. 2.

Stenstrom, R.C., and Blair, M., 1976, Geology and hydrology of the Freeport Area, Freeport, Illinois: in An Environmental Inventory and Study of the Pecatonica River Project Area, Freeport, IL, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island, p. 7-104.

Stenstrom, R., and Lesher, C., 1976, Geology and hydrology of flood project areas, Turtle Creek Project Area, South Beloit, IL - Beloit, WI: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island, p. 8-120.

Stenstrom, R.C., 1989, The influence of lithology on the color and quality of surface waters along the northern Minnesota-Ontario border: a test of a hypothesis: Second Keck Research Symposium in Geology, Beloit, p. 180-182.

Stenstrom, R.C., 1991, Teaching, research, and promotion - Is science education in decay?: Journal of Geological Education, v. 39, no. 1, p. 4-5.

Stenstrom, R.C., 1992, Supporting sphomore-level research n hydrology, South-Central Wisconsin: Fifth Keck Research Symposium in Geology, Washington & Lee, p. 214-217.

top

HENRY "THE CHIEF" WOODARD
Professor Emeritus
A.B., A.M., Dartmouth College; Ph.D., University of Chicago
woodard@beloit.edu

Hank joined the faculty in 1953 and has been an emeritus faculty member since 1992. Though retired, at times it seems as if Hank teaches as much as the other faculty! His teaching interests included mineralogy and petrology. His research has focused on the complex geology in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (Minnesota) and Quetico Provincial Park (Ontario), where he has sponsored numerous undergraduate research projects.

Hank enjoys traveling (he has traveled to practically every corner of the Earth), gardening, and pickling and eating his harvest. He lives in Beloit with his wife Lyn.

Research

Petrology and structure of igneous and metamorphic terranes
Vermilion migmatite complex, northern Minnesota-southern Canada
Fault contact between the Quetico gniess belt and the Wawa greenstone belt, northern Minnesota and southern Canada
K-feldspar in dolomite rocks
K-feldspar in Mississippi Valley-type mineral deposits

top