AGA Elections November, 2025                

 

Presidential Candidate Biographies:

 

AGA Presidential nominee Prof Sudhir Kumar

https://www.kumarlab.net/ 

Academic Appointments: Laura H. Carnell Professor of Biology (2014– ), and Founding Director of the Institute for Genomics and Evolutionary Medicine, Temple Univ. Previously: Regents’ Professor (2012–2014), Foundation Professor (2011–2014), and Director of the Center for Evolutionary Medicine and Informatics (2010–2014) at Arizona State University (ASU); Director of the Center for Evolutionary Functional Genomics (2003–2010); Full Professor (2006–2011), Associate Professor (2002–2006), Assistant Professor (1998–2002), School of Life Sciences, ASU. Postdoctoral Fellow (1996–1998), Penn State Univ. Education: PhD Genetics (1996), Penn State Univ; M.Sc. Biological Sciences (Hons.) and B.Eng. Electrical & Electronics Engineering (Hons.), dual-degree program (1990), Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani, India. Awards: George W. Beadle Award, Genetics Society of America (2025); Top-100 articles of all time (Nature 2014, 2025); Highly Cited Researcher, Molecular Biology & Genetics, Clarivate (2021–2025); Community Service Award, Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution (SMBE, 2017); Outstanding Science Alumnus Award, Penn State Univ (2015); Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2009); Innovation Award in Functional Genomics, Burroughs Wellcome Fund (2000). Service: Editor-in-Chief, Molecular Biology and Evolution (2012–2022); Senior Editor, Journal of Molecular Evolution (2025–); Specialty Chief Editor, Frontiers in Bioinformatics (2023–); President (2013), Councilor (2012–2012 ), and Secretary (2004–2006) of SMBE; Webmaster, American Genetic Association (1999–2007). Chair, NIH Genome Variation and Evolution Study Section (2016–2018) and NIGMS R35 Early Investigator Study Section (2023); member of numerous NIH and NSF panels. Research Interests: Molecular evolution and phylogenetics of species, mutations, and tumors. Current work includes developing big data evolutionary methods and software (e.g., MEGA, TimeTree), green computing, deep learning, and evolutionary approaches to genomic medicine.

 

AGA Presidential nominee Dr. Jeffrey M. Good

https://www.thegoodlab.org/

Academic Appointments: Professor ( 2023-present), Assistant Professor (2010-2016), Division of Biological Sciences and Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana; Visiting Fellow, Centre for Biodiversity Analysis, Australian National University (2018-2019); Postdoctoral Fellow (2008-2010), Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany. Education: PhD Ecology & Evolutionary Biology (2007), University of Arizona; MS Biology (2022), BS Zoology (1999), Department of Biology, University of Idaho. Awards: Genetics Editor’s Choice Award (2019); Visiting Fellow Award (2018), Australian National University; CSIRO Distinguished Visiting Researcher Award (2018); AAAS Newcomb Cleveland Prize (2010); NSF International Postdoctoral Fellowship (2008); Max Planck Society Postdoctoral Fellowship (2007); Hoshaw Award for Graduate Excellence (2007), University of Arizona; NSF-IGERT Fellowship (2002); Graduate Excellence Award (2001), University of Idaho Alumni Association. Service: American Genetics Association Council (2020-2023), Founder & Director UM Genomics Core Facility (2013-present), co-Director Montana NIH-INBRE Data Science Core (2023-present), Director Philip L. Wright Zoological Museum (2015-2023), SARS-CoV-2 surveillance research network (lead co-I, 2021-2023), Guest Associate Editor, PNAS (2024); Guest Associate Editor, PLoS Genetics (2011, 2015); Associate Editor, Evolution (2013-2015), Associate Editor, Molecular Ecology (2016, Special Issue); NIH study sections (2014, 2016, 2019, 2023); NSF panels (2012, 2020). Research Interests: Comparative and population genomics of mammalian adaptation, speciation, and conservation, evolution of reproduction. Current research includes genomic studies on adaptation to seasonal environments, evolutionary responses to climate change, and the evolution of genomic conflict during gametogenesis and placental development.

 

Councilor Candidate Biographies:

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Prof Alfred L. Roca

Dr. Alfred L. Roca is deeply connected to the AGA and the Journal of Heredity. For over two decades, he has peer-reviewed manuscripts for the JOH and currently serves as an Academic Editor. He has contributed fourteen papers to the JOH, one of which received an AGA award for best paper by a graduate student. He was lead organizer for an AGA Conservation Genetics Conference and has served as an instructor at ten AGA-sponsored courses on Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics, which enroll several dozen participants including a substantial proportion from the Global South. He independently sponsored students from Indonesia and Nepal to attend these courses. His research applies genomic approaches to address questions in evolutionary biology and conservation. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University and conducted postdoctoral research at the NIH Laboratory of Genomic Diversity. He is currently Full Professor at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), with over 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals including the JOH, Science, Nature, Cell, Current Biology, and PNAS. His elephant genetics research was cited by the IUCN as critical for recognizing that African forest and savanna elephants comprise distinct species. He is working with Indonesian colleagues on genetic analyses of two rhinoceros species and serves as genetics advisor to the Rhinoceros Research Council. As an AGA Council member, he would work to enhance the impact of the AGA and JOH in advancing science, ensuring quality peer review, fostering growth and positive change, and nurturing the next generation of scientists.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Christine E. Edwards

Dr. Christine E. Edwards (Christy) is the Stephen and Camilla Brauer Conservation Geneticist at the Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG). She received a B.A. degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Spanish from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Ph.D. in Botany from the University of Florida.  She was a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Botany at the University of Wyoming and then worked as a research biologist in Environmental Laboratory of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center. She joined MBG in 2013 and her primary role is to lead MBG’s Conservation Genetics research program. Her research focuses on using population genomics, phylogenomics, quantitative genetics, and DNA metabarcoding to help understand the ecology and evolutionary biology of endangered species and aid in applied in-situ and ex-situ conservation efforts.

 Dr. Edwards is passionate about training the next generation of scientists in research and is involved in mentoring early-career scientists at the undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral levels.  She holds courtesy faculty positions in the Biology Departments at Washington University in St. Louis (WashU), the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL), and St. Louis University, enabling her to serve as advisor for PhD and MS students.  She also serves on the WashU’s Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Graduate Program’s Steering and Admissions committees and as an Executive Committee Member of the Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center, an institution that promotes research and training in basic ecology and biodiversity conservation. Dr. Edwards feels that one of best aspects of the AGA is the funding and professional development opportunities it offers to early-career scientists and is excited by the prospect of being more involved in efforts to promote student involvement in science as a member of the AGA council.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Klaus-Peter Koepfli

Dr. Klaus Koepfli is a conservation and evolutionary geneticist and is currently Lead Scientist, New Species Development, at Colossal Biosciences in Dallas, Texas. He is an Affiliate Graduate Faculty in the College of Science at George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia; a Visiting Associate Faculty in the Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado; and a Research Associate at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. He received his Ph.D. and conducted postdoctoral research under the mentorship of Robert Wayne at the University of California, Los Angeles, and then became a National Cancer Institute Research Training Award Fellow in the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity led by Stephen O’Brien. He has authored and co-authored >140 peer-reviewed publications (h-index = 53, i10-index = 98), including papers in Nature, Science, and PNAS. He has served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Heredity since 2020 and is also an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution and Frontiers in Genetics, and an Academic Editor for the Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research. He serves on the Vertebrate Genomes Project executive council. Since 2010, he has been a co-organizer of and instructor in the Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics training course (ConGen Global). Dr. Koepfli's recent research uses population and comparative genomics to address critical conservation challenges in endangered mammalian species. By examining genetic diversity in relation to demographic history, he investigates the causes of inbreeding depression and develops evidence-based intervention strategies to protect species at risk of extinction.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Katie Lotterhos

Dr. Katie Lotterhos is an Associate Professor in the Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences Northeastern University who seeks to understand how the past has shaped current patterns of genomic diversity and how climate change will affect biodiversity in the future. Her lab works largely on marine organisms and uses a combination of field surveys, experiments, mathematical modeling, genomics, and biostatistics. She received a BA in Physics with a Biology Minor from Binghamton University and a PhD in Biology from Florida State University. Her notable awards include a CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation and a Fulbright from Sweden. Recently, she organized a Special Issue for The American Naturalist on “Genomic Forecasting” and as the Secretary for the American Society of Naturalists she led a multi-society survey, including AGA, to document the effects of recent changes of federal policies on our field. Education, inclusion, and service are central to her philosophy of practicing science. Her lab conducts outreach with local environmental justice communities in the Boston area, and she recently spearheaded a national Lab Meeting Program that helped students expand their professional network by matching them with research labs. She also offers workshops in statistical genomics and building apps for data collection. As a Council Member for AGA, she will aim to be approachable and work towards a welcoming society.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Taras K Oleksyk

Dr. Taras K Oleksyk  I am a Fulbright Scholar (2025) and Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at Oakland University (Michigan), with adjunct appointments at Uzhhorod National University (Ukraine) and the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. My research bridges evolutionary genomics, conservation genetics, and the genomics of complex diseases, with a strong focus on underrepresented and conflict-affected regions. I lead large-scale international collaborations, including the Type 1 Diabetes Exome and Genome Diversity in Ukraine initiatives, which promote genomic inclusion and cross-border scientific cooperation. I have authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications and currently serve as Associate Editor for the Journal of Heredity and as an Editorial Board Member for GigaByte. My mission is to make genomics globally accessible and to empower the next generation of researchers to build local capacity and share knowledge openly. Within the AGA, I have co-directed and co-organized the Recent Advances in Conservation Genetics (ConGen) courses since 2015 and co-authored the 2024 Journal of Heredity paper, which describes the global impact of ConGen. Over the last three decades, these workshops have trained hundreds of scientists worldwide in population genomics and conservation biology, bringing the latest research advances to students and conservation professionals globally and fostering enduring networks of collaboration across continents.  I also organize other initiatives, including the Ukrainian School for Evolutionary Biology (USEB), the Eastern European Bioinformatics and Genomics (EEBG) annual workshop, and the Big Data Science (BDS^3) annual workshop.  Using these platforms, I work to build federated, inclusive data infrastructures that connect researchers worldwide and advocate for open and FAIR science. I would be honored to serve on the AGA Council, advancing these priorities: broadening access to genomic training, supporting early-career scientists, and strengthening the Association’s global leadership in genetics and conservation.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Tony Gamble

Dr. Tony Gamble  I am an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and research associate at the Milwaukee Public Museum. My research investigates the evolutionary and developmental processes that generate biological diversity. My current focus is on the evolution of sex differences and sex determining mechanisms – particularly the evolution of sex chromosomes. I received my PhD from the University of Minnesota, working with Andrew Simons, followed by a postdoc in David Zarkower’s lab at the same institution. I’ve authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications (h-index = 39) including multiple papers in Journal of Heredity. My roles at Marquette University include serving on the IACUC and as chair of graduate admissions. I am eager to serve as an AGA council member to contribute to the AGA’s mission to encourage the study of comparative genetics and genomics. I also hope to build on the AGA’s strengths supporting early career researchers, fostering representative participation in science, and maintaining excellence of the societies’ journal, Journal of Heredity.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee Dr. Cynthia C. Steiner

Dr. Cynthia Steiner is the Associate Director of Conservation Genetics at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA), where she leads projects applying genetic and genomic tools to study and monitor threatened species in zoos and the wild. Her research spans vertebrate taxonomy, phylogenetics, chromosome evolution, adaptive trait genetics, population genetics, and conservation management. She also manages the Tissue and DNA collection at the SDZWA Wildlife Biodiversity Bank and has authored over 40 peer-reviewed publications in journals including Science, Current Biology, Molecular Biology and Evolution, Zoo Biology, and Journal of Heredity. Cynthia earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University Simón Bolívar in Caracas, Venezuela, and completed her master’s and Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology at the University of Montpellier, France. She conducted postdoctoral research at UC San Diego and in SDZWA’s Conservation Genetics lab. She is involved in the Zoonomia Consortium and is a member of the AZA Molecular Scientific Advisory Group, the Center for Zoonomics, and the IUCN Animal Biobanking for Conservation Specialist Group. At SDZWA, she serves as secretary of the LatinX/Hispanic Diversity and Inclusion group. For more than 16 years, Cynthia has mentored undergraduate and Master’s students through SDZWA’s fellowship program and collaborations with UC San Diego and UC Santa Cruz. Cynthia is committed to advancing education and research in the fields of genomics and conservation biology.

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2025 AGA Council nominee Prof Michael Russello

Prof Michael Russello is a Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of British Columbia in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. Prof. Russello received his PhD from the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology at Columbia University, where he graduated with distinction. He completed postdoctoral training at Yale University, and was the Sarah and Daniel Hrdy Fellow in Conservation Biology at Harvard University. Work in his lab at UBC is at the interface of ecology and evolution, investigating the genomics of adaptation, life history variation and population size change. His research program has helped inform biodiversity conservation in over a dozen countries spanning four continents for a diverse range of species, including Galápagos giant tortoises, Sockeye salmon, American pikas, Neotropical parrots, Cuban crocodiles and a host of Canadian species-at-risk. This research has also made significant contributions to the intellectual framework of conservation genetics and genomics, including challenging concepts related to identifying units for conservation, explaining how hybridization and population size changes affect diversity, understanding how invasive species establish and spread, advancing strategies for captive breeding and repatriation, and developing tools to inform applied conservation. Prof. Russello has over 130 peer-reviewed publications produced with a large network of collaborators, including academic, government, and indigenous partners. He has been a long-time member of the AGA, and as a council member, will bring his experience and expertise in supporting early-career scientists and contributing to the vision of the society, including its flagship journal.

 

 

Early Career Councilor Candidate Biography:

 

2025 AGA Council nominee for Early Career Councilor Dr. Nevé Baker

Dr. Nevé Baker is an NSF earth sciences postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota, and a research associate at the Smithsonian National Zoo Center for Conservation Genomics. Dr. Baker is interested in applying ancient and environmental DNA in addition to traditional genomic techniques to understand the pre-exploitation history of marine and aquatic mammals and inform modern conservation. Her current research integrates sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) with other paleoecological proxies to reconstruct the role of beavers and other mammalian ecological engineers in Holocene ecosystems. Dr. Baker obtained her PhD from the University of California Santa Cruz in 2023, where she was advised by Dr. Beth Shapiro. She has published in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Heredity, Ecosphere, and Nature Ecology and Evolution, and is a member of the American Genetics Association, the American Geophysical Union, and the sedaDNA Society. Her previous societal service includes serving as the secretary for the Society of Conservation Biology Santa Cruz Chapter, and co-convening and chairing the American Geophysical Union’s first sedaDNA session at their 2024 annual meeting.

 

2025 AGA Council nominee for Early Career Councilor Dr. Malia A. Santos 

Dr. Malia A. Santos is a postdoctoral researcher in the Smith Lab, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado Boulder. She received her BA in Biology from Willamette University under the mentorship of Dr. Christopher Smith. Recently, she completed her PhD in Ecology and Evolution from the University of Wyoming, where she studied under Dr. David Tank. She is a member of the American Society of Plant Taxonomists (ASPT), the Botanical Society of America (BSA), the Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE), and the American Genetics Association (AGA).

Dr. Santos’ research focuses on plant evolutionary biology, with an emphasis on phylogenomics, hybridization, and interactions in the genera Tricalysia and Castilleja. Her work integrates genomic, ecological, and biogeographic data to investigate species relationships, diversification dynamics, and mutualistic and parasitic interactions. Her publications include works in Heredity, Genome Biology and Evolution, FEMS Microbiology Ecology, and collaborative work in evolutionary genomics of plant-microbe interactions.

In addition to her research, Dr. Santos is committed to mentoring and fostering inclusive STEM environments through programs such as The Paintbrush Project, Randall Women in Science: IDEA, SACNAS, and Kaleidoscope Science. She also engages the public through art-science outreach and citizen science initiatives aimed at improving awareness and understanding of plant biodiversity.