School of Graduate Studies

Andy Grand Pre Photo

Name: Clinton Andrew “Andy” Grand Pré

Year in Program: 5th year                         

Department: Anatomy

Mentor: Dr. Emma Schachner

Hometown: Oakton, Virginia

Education:

University of Pennsylvania, Ph.D. in Geology, 2011

East Carolina University, MS in Geology, 2006

Franklin and Marshall College, BS in Astrophysics and Geology, 2003

Past Research Experience:

The Application of Macro- and Microfossils to Identify Paleoearthquakes in Sumatra, Indonesia and to Characterize Geomorphic and Ecological Succession on a Marsh Platform after Hurricane Isabel in North Carolina, USA. 2011 Ph.D. Dissertation.

Holocene Paleoenvironmental Change in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina: Foraminiferal and Stable Isotopic Evidence. 2006 Masters Thesis.

Current Research Interests:  The functional anatomy of the hepatic piston in extant crocodilians. The Mesozoic evolutionary history of the hepatic piston in Crocodylomorpha. The functional anatomy of air sacs in modern birds. The functional anatomy and evolutionary history of pulmonary systems in Archosauria. Environmental and Climatic drivers of functional anatomy and morphology. Novel uses of stable isotopes in fossils. Paleoenvironmental change related to vertebrate paleontology.   

Publications:

Grand Pre, C.A., Horton, B.P., Hawkes, A.D., Kelsey, H.M., Natawidjaja, D., Rubin, C., Suwargadi, B., Yulianto, E., 2012, Stratigraphic evidence for an early Holocene earthquake in Aceh, Indonesia, Quaternary Science Reviews, v. 54, p. 142-151.

Kemp, A.C., Horton, B.P., Vann, D.R., Engelhart, S.E., Grand Pre, C.A., Vane, C.H., Nikitina, D., Anisfeld, S., 2012, Quantitative vertical zonation of salt-marsh foraminifera for reconstructing former sea level; an example from New Jersey, U.S.A., Quaternary Science Reviews, v. 54, p. 26-39.

Grand Pre, C.A., Culver, S.J., Mallinson, D.J., Farrell, K.M., Corbett, D.R., Horton, B.P., Hillier, C., Riggs, S.R., Snyder, S.W., Buzas, M.A., 2011, Rapid Holocene coastal change revealed by high-resolution micropaleontological analysis, North Carolina, U.S.A., Quaternary Research, v. 76, p. 319-334.

Dura, T., Rubin, C.M., Kelsey, H.M., Horton, B.P., Hawkes, A., Vane, C., Daryono, M., Grand Pre, C.A., Ladinsky, T., Bradley, S., 2011, Preservation of Holocene earthquakes, Sungai Pinang, Western Sumatra, Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 116, B11306, doi: 10.1029/2011JB008205.

Culver, S.J., Grand Pre, C.A., Mallinson, D.J., Riggs, S.R., Corbett, D.R., Foley, J., Hale, M., Metger, L., Ricardo, J., Rosenberger, J., Smith, D.G., Smith, C.W., Snyder, S.W., Twamley, D., Farrell, K., and Horton, B.P., 2007, Late Holocene barrier island collapse: Outer Banks, North Carolina, USA, The Sedimentary Record, v. 5, p. 4-8.

Reports

Culver, S.J., Corbett, D.R., Mallinson, D., Riggs, S.R., Grand Pre, C.A., Horton, B.P., Kemp, A., and Engelhart, S., 2008. Foraminifera, diatoms and pollen as indicators of past, present, and future coastal change in North Carolina, U.S.A. and Terengganu, Malaysia. Conference on the Current State of Knowledge of the Setiu Wetlands. Institute of Oceanography, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, December 2007, 11p.

Career Goal: There are many possibilities: Museum Research Scientist and Curator, Outreach Educator, Medical and/or Veterinarian School professor, and STEM mentor to underserved and vulnerable populations.

Best Thing about the Program: The opportunity to combine my interests in clinical human anatomy, teaching, vertebrate paleontology, functional reptilian anatomy, paleontology, and geology into one area of focus for my Ph.D.

What makes you unique?  I have had a wide variety of scholarly opportunities and careers. I have advanced degrees in geology, earth science, astrophysics. After receiving a PhD in geology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2011 I have held the following positions: Visiting Assistant Professor for a prestigious liberal arts college, Project Manager for a private ground water exploration company, founding member of a ground water exploration business, semi-professional strongman athlete and personal trainer and now a graduate student in a complimentary field to my paleontology and geology background. This wide array of professional experiences gives me a wide lens of experience and allows me to approach my scientific questions in a less traditional manor. I am also a previous state record holder in my sport, and a feline and reptile enthusiast: I have an 18-year-old cat named KB, a 1 year old Cornish Rex cat named Neko and 8 Boa constrictors that I love like my children.