Dr. Drew Sieg
Associate Professor of Biology (2019)
BS - University of Richmond, 2007
PhD - Georgia Institute of Technology, 2013
Dissertation: Plant chemical defenses against grazers and pathogens in Atlantic salt marshes and their relationship to preventing establishment of fungal farms
My disciplinary research focuses on chemical ecology, which is the study of how plants, animals, fungi and bacteria use chemical compounds to compete, communicate, or defend themselves from potential threats. While my background in this area focused on marine systems, I now employ ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata) as a model species to assess population-level variation in antifungal and antiherbivore chemical defenses across a latitudinal gradient. My lab will also look at the effects of climate on regulation and investment in chemical defenses.
I also conduct educational research regarding how undergraduate retention in STEM can be expanded through pedagogical practices that embrace active learning, civic engagement, and ethics.