LSU Science Professor Among 2019 AAAS Fellows

 

Robb Brumfield, newly appointed associate dean of research and administration in the College of Science, has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, or AAAS, the world’s largest general scientific society.

The 443 newly elected Fellows represent each of AAAS's 24 sections, from neuroscience and psychology to social, economic and political sciences. Fellows are chosen because of their efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished.

Brumfield’s research focuses primarily on the evolutionary genomics of birds, which often involves traveling to international locations, like Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil, to conduct fieldwork. 

He previously led the university’s Museum of Natural Science as its director from 2013 until 2019, when he moved into his current position. He has also continued to serve as the Museum’s curator of genetic resources since 2003, helping to grow what has become one of the world’s largest university-based tissue collections of birds. Additionally, Brumfield serves as the Roy Paul Daniels Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences.

Brumfield, who is an LSU alumnus, earned his bachelor’s degree in zoology in 1990. He eventually went on to obtain a master’s degree from Illinois State University and then a doctorate degree in zoology from the University of Maryland at College Park in 1999. He then went on to work as a NSF postdoctoral fellow at the University of Washington until moving on to LSU.

“Robb is an exemplary researcher and colleague. His work and commitment to advancing ornithological research at LSU has helped place our Museum of Natural Science among the top ornithological research programs in the nation, said Cynthia Peterson, dean of the LSU College of Science and 2009 AAAS fellow.

“On behalf of the LSU College of Science, I extend my congratulations for this distinguished recognition.”