Patrick Drohan, Ph.D.
- Professor of Pedology & Director of Graduate Studies
University Park, PA 16802
- Email pjd7@psu.edu
- Office 814-863-4246
Areas of Expertise
- Soil Science
- Watershed Management
- Landscape Ecology
- Natural Resource Management
Education
- Ph.D., Soil Science, The Pennsylvania State University, 2000
- M.S., Environmental Pollution Control. The Pennsylvania State University, 1996
- B.S., Natural Resource Management, Cook College-Rutgers University, 1992
Other
- 2001 — University of Maine, Maine Compost School, medium- and large-scale composting certification.
Responsibilities and Interests
Dr. Patrick Drohan's research examines people's use of landscapes and the accompanying changes in soil function across the larger ecosystem the soil supports. His research addresses basic science questions, but also demonstrates how this new knowledge can be used in applied research to improve land management and ecosystem stability. Dr. Drohan has taught over 24 different courses in the natural and physical sciences, and currently teaches: urban soils; soil genesis, geomorphology and classification; field interpretation of soil properties; a soil and land management leadership course; and study abroad courses in Scotland and Ireland on soil and society's co-evolution through time. His current research addresses changes in dynamic and inherent soil properties across time scales spanning the Pleistocene to present. He is an Associate Editor for: Soil Use and Management and past Associate Editor for the Soil Science Society of America Journal and Agricultural and Environment Letters. He is a member of the Soil Science Society of America's (SSSA) Council of Soil Science Examiners and past chair of the Soil Science Society of America's Pedology and Wetlands Divisions. He is a co-founder of the Smithsonian Soil Exhibit Project, Dig It, and in recognition of his work in support of Dig It, he received a President's Citation for Outstanding Service from the Soil Science Society of America.
Appointment
- 50% Teaching
- 50% Research
Courses Taught
- SOILS 403 - Soil Morphology Practicum
- SOILS 404 - Urban Soils
- SOILS 416 - Soil Genesis and Classification
- SOILS 597 - Soil health for one health
- SOILS 499a and 499b - Co-evolution of land and people, and "Maymestor" in Wexford, Ireland and Belfast, Northern Ireland (prior Stirling, Scotland)
- SOILS 497D - Paleosols
- SOILS 516 - Field Soil Genesis
