In January 2023, Andy became Associate Dean and Director of the CFAES Wooster Campus, while maintaining a 50% faculty appointment in Entomology to continue his research and extension work.
My goal is to understand how insect pests adapt to rapidly changing selection pressures in agroecosystems such as host-shifting to important crops or resistance to management tactics. Specifically, my research uses molecular ecology and population genomic techniques to characterize the genetic basis for insect pest adaptation and how these adaptive traits spread across the landscape. Understanding and demonstrating how insects adapt, as well as communicating research-based insect management recommendations, delays the evolution of resistance or emergence of pests, and ensures a safer, sustainable and more productive food supply. My program has produced 106 total peer-reviewed publications, graduated 7 Ph.D. students and 1 Master’s student, and generated over $11 million as PI or co-PI. I have engaged with extension stakeholders using hundreds of co-authored newsletter articles, dozens of co-authored fact sheets, and over 150 presentations.
Research (70% appointment): My Insect Molecular Ecology and Adaptation Laboratory (IMEAL) determines molecular interactions between insects and their environment, identifies genes that are favored during adaptation, and develop management strategies that limit pest impacts. Thus, the goal of my program is to integrate basic biological and evolutionary research to solve applied research problems. My program is also highly interdisciplinary, providing my expertise to other CFAES and OSU departments through graduate student committees and research projects.
