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Nicholas Comerford will start his new role as dean of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources and director for Research and Cooperative Extension effective September 1, 2017.
Comerford is currently director of North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, where he also is a professor in the soil and water science department. He oversees 2,300 acres of infrastructure, along with research and extension programs of faculty representing nine campus departments. In his early career, Comerford was employed as a forest soil specialist by the State of Washington, mapping forested soils in the foothills of Mount Rainier and along the Skagit River Valley.
“We are very excited about Dr. Comerford joining the leadership team at Mānoa,” said UH Mānoa Interim Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Michael Bruno. “His impressive and varied accomplishments in the field, his expertise in tropical soils science, and his experience working closely with both faculty and the community via vibrant extension programs all add up to a terrific background for the new dean of CTAHR.”
More on Nicholas Comerford
Comerford’s research expertise is in the area of forest soils, with an emphasis in tropical and subtropical regions. His work concentrated on soil-tree root interactions, the measurement and modeling of soil nutrient bioavailability and general aspects of forest soil management. As an active member of the Soil Science Society of America, he was elected president of the society and served in that capacity in 2010. Comerford was a past board member and chair of the related Alliance of Crop, Soil and Environmental Science SocietiesCorporation.
Comerford earned his PhD in silviculture and forest influences from the State University of New York and Syracuse University, his master’s degree in forestry from the University of Maine and his bachelor’s degree in forestry from the University of Illinois.