UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT

Interview #860
TURNER, MONICA G.

TURNER, MONICA G. (1958- )
Eugene P. Odum Professor of Ecology, Department of Zoology
At UW: 1994-

Interviewed: 	2007	
Interviewer: 	Sandy Pfahler
Length: 	1 hour, 47 minutes
Series:		Campus Voices; Women in Science and Engineering

Abstract: In her April 2007 interview with Sandy Pfahler, Monica Turner talks about her two decade career as a landscape ecologist from the mid 1980s to the mid-2000s. She discusses her upbringing and training in the field, which led to her tenure in the department of Zoology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Turner reflects extensively on her research and contributions to the field, the climate for women at UW, and the realities of departmental life and funding. This interview was conducted for inclusion in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Archives Oral History Project.

Keywords: Long Island NY; Fordham University; University of Georgia; research and dissertation; Oak Ridge Laboratories; Yellowstone National Park; landscape ecology; the University of Wisconsin-Madison; teaching; graduate students; funding; zoology department; campus climate for women in the sciences; university service; Eugene P. Odum; the National Academy of Sciences; Madison Ecology Group; recreation.
							
First Interview Session (April 23, 2007): Digital File

00:00:00	[begin Tape 1/Side 1] Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction

00:00:30	Monica Turner was born in 1958 in New York City.  She grew up in Nassau County, Long Island.  She talks about her childhood and Catholic elementary school education.  Her class was the first that studied advanced math, starting with algebra in 8th grade.  She spoke about her class scoring well on standardized exams.

00:03:16	MT attended a Catholic high school.  She did not have any particular interest in science or biology at the time.  As a teenage girl, she felt it wasn’t popular to be too smart.  She answered exam questions wrong on purpose in order to keep from showing she was smart.  She speaks of her love of the outdoors and her plans to be a forest ranger as a career.

00:05:59	She talks briefly about her parents.  Her father was a lawyer.  Her mother earned a master’s degree and was later an executive in the Girl Scout organization.  Tuner was a Girl Scout all the way through high school.  Turner is an only child.

00:08:40	She talks about the family expectation that she would attend college.  Her maternal grandmother, who was born in 1894 and orphaned at age 2, had a graduate degree from Columbia University and taught German and business.  Her father’s family did not have the same tradition of higher education.

00:11:23	Turner explains how she decided to attend Fordham University in the Bronx.  She talks about the quality of the education she got at Fordham.  She tells about a history of science course she took in the honors program.  She wasn’t exposed to ecology in class until her senior year.  She gave some consideration to medical school.

00:16:30	She discusses her consideration of a career as a veterinarian and her volunteer work at the Bronx Zoo.  She also did summer work for the Student Conservation Association at Yellowstone National Park when she was 19 years old.  

00:18:44	MT explains how after her ranger experience she was determined that she wanted to go into ecology and decided to attend graduate school.  She describes her senior honor’s thesis research on water quality and algae growth in Long Island Sound.  She had a strong preference for field research over lab work.

00:20:47	Turner explains how she chose to attend graduate school at the University of Georgia.  She describes interviewing for graduate school positions. After intending going to Boston University, she visited Georgia and fell in love with the school and program. 

00:24:43	She talks about the strengths of the program at Georgia and some of the professors that she worked with at the university.  

00:26:12	MT discusses her research on the effect of wild horses and burning on the ecology of the Georgia barrier islands.  Her funding was through the National Park Service.  

00:27:30	She recalled nearly leaving graduate school because she didn’t take any ecology courses in the first two quarters. After considering a science education masters program and taking her first graduate ecology course in her 3rd quarter, she was convinced to stay. She talks about learning how to create computerized systems models with peers in the department who fanned the flames of her interest in ecology.  She talks about a summer research project in the Virgin Islands, her first exposure to field research.  Susan Bratton of the Park Service was very influential on MT.

00:32:59	She talks about Eugene Odum and the origin of the professorship named after him.  She describes Odum’s influence in the field.

00:35:01	MT discusses her postdoctoral work at Georgia.  She helped organize the first landscape ecology symposium in the US in 1986.  The development of this field in North America is what MT feels she is one of her greatest contributions. She also helped edit a book.  Other writing and publication.

00:41:20	She talks about searching for a job.  She had two job offers for tenure-track faculty positions, but decided instead to take a job at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory research facility.  By this time, she loved research.  She worked there for seven years.

00:44:23	Turner discusses her research on ecosystem disruption at Yellowstone.  She was there during the fires of 1988. [end side 1; begin side 2] The fires contributed greatly to her study of natural disturbance dynamics.  She discusses her research on aspen tree seedlings, soils, carbon balance, and other topics.  The value of Yellowstone as a research site.

00:49:28	MT discusses problems with funding at the Oak Ridge research facility.  She explains why she opted to return to the academic setting and how she got a job at UW.  She also had an opportunity to teach at Duke University, but chose UW.

00:53:56	She talks about her salary and benefits when she arrived at UW.  She negotiated a tenured position.  She talks about her family and her other obligations.  She accepted once there was a spousal hire position for her husband.

00:56:29	MT talks about her transition into an academic position after working in a federal research program.  She describes several major research projects including her research on land-water interactions.  

01:01:23	She talks about state and federal funding for her research.  She has worked on flood plain research for several years.  Interaction with the Department of Natural Resources and the EPA.  Study of elk migration.

01:04:23	She describes research on historical landscape changes and long-term effects of habitat changes.  Travel and field research.

01:06:48	Turner talks about the quality and interests of her graduate students.  She has had 7-8 students finish their Ph.D. degrees and they have a good placement rate and publication record.  Teaching duties.  Undergraduate and graduate students.

01:09:01	MT explains why she enjoys teaching graduate students.  The lack of interaction with students in undergraduate classes.

01:10:15	She discusses the department’s office and laboratory facilities and her technology requirements. She talked about her frustration with facility upgrades.

01:11:57	She talks about the lack of focus on the graduate programs at UW.  She feels that the university fails to offer adequate funding to attract the best students.  

01:13:56	Turner talks about the academic organization of the department.  She discusses collaborative research across fields and departments.  The Madison Ecology Group is an overarching organization whose goal is to provide cohesiveness for ecology on campus.

01:18:04	MT talks about the strong ecology programs at some other universities.  

01:20:02	She discusses some of her administrative and committee service.  She was on the Biological Sciences Research Committee.  She tries not to be on more than one national and one campus committee at a time.  Mentoring of junior faculty.  

01:22:14	She is hoping to serve as president of the Ecological Society of America.  She has been asked more than once, but the timing has not yet been right. She has enjoyed review panels and committees.

01:24:14	Turner talks about the climate for women on the UW campus.  She feels that the campus is mostly equitable for women.  She has not been involved too much with the campus effort to improve conditions for women.  She was able to work part time when she needed to as her children were born.  She talks about balancing work and family.  

01:28:58	Turner lists some of the honors she has won during her career.  She received the Distinguished Scientist Award at Oak Ridge.  In 2004 she was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

01:32:37	She discusses the role of her work in restructuring the field of landscape ecology.  

01:35:03	[begin Tape 2/Side 1] MT talks about her love of research and writing academic work.  She discusses teaching graduate students with varying styles how to write well.  

01:38:15	She discusses the challenge of balancing work and family life.  She describes her husband and children.  She describes her involvement with her children’s activities.

01:42:16	She talks about exercise and recreation.  

01:44:41	She talks about the importance of being persistent in obtaining your goals.  

01:47:10	End of First Interview Session 

End of Interview #860