Dr. McCowan comes from Louisville, KY, USA; where she began studying fossilized coral reefs and ecology. She studied a BSc in Biology, with a Geology minor, and an ASc in Chemistry locally at Indiana University Southeast before moving to Australia for postgraduate studies in Marine Ecology and Fisheries Biology with the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reefs Studies at James Cook University, Townsville, QLD. Dr. McCowan attained a graduate diploma in marine ecology research methods, then completed her PhD (2014). She completed a year postdoc with the ARC before moving back stateside and completing an independent postdoc while working as a field consultant, naturalist guide and adjunct lecturer. Dr. McCowan’s research focuses on the well-adapted nature of Cnidarian polyps, their dimensional organization, and disturbance-modulated evolution. Dr. McCowan specializes in teaching Marine Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, and calculus-derivative statistics. She loves discussing philosophy with her husband, taking camping trips and playing near any water.