Anna Sher
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Earlham College B.S.
Anna Amelia Sher | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | University of New Mexico Ph.D Earlham College B.S. |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Denver |
| Thesis | Seedling ecology of competing riparian trees : native cottonwood (Populus deltoides subsp wislizenii) and invasive salt cedar (Tamarix ramosissima). (1998) |
Anna Amelia Sher is an American plant ecologist who is a professor at the University of Denver. She works on conservation and the restoration of areas invaded by Tamarix. She is the author of two textbooks, Ecology:Concepts and Applications and Introduction to conservation biology.
Sher was an undergraduate student at Earlham College, where she majored in biology and art,[1] and was first introduced to invasive plants, which she attributes to biology professor Brent Smith.[2] She moved to the University of New Mexico for graduate studies, where she worked under the supervision of Diane Marshall.[2] Her doctoral research considered the ecology of competing riparian trees: cottonwood and invasive salt cedar (Tamarix).[3] She completed field work at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico. After earning her doctorate, Sher travelled to Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, where she was supported by a Fulbright Program scholarship.[1] On her return to the United States, Sher joined the University of California, Davis as a postdoctoral researcher investigating invasive grasses.[1]
Research and career
In 2003, Sher moved to Denver where she was appointed Assistant Professor at the University of Denver and Director of Research at the Denver Botanic Gardens.[4] She was promoted to tenured associate professor in 2008 and full professor in 2017.[5]
Sher's research considers preservation and the environmental protection and conservation, the ecology of invasive plants and ways to restore damaged ecosystems.[1] She has extensively investigated the Tamarix, an invasive, exotic tree species of West America.[2]
Sher was the second female full professor in the history of her department, and the third in the division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at DU. She was the first mother to both achieve tenure and be promoted to full in her division. She would go on to found the STEM Women Faculty Association and lead a cross-campus team to address inequalities for faculty in the sciences.[6]
Awards and honors
- 2020 University of Denver Distinguished Scholar Award[7]
- 2020 Robin Morgan Outstanding Woman Award[8]
