MICHIGAN STATE GRAD HONORED BY USGS

The U.S. Geological Survey last week awarded James Grace the title of Fellow of the Ecological Society of America. He and two peer scientists were recognized by their peers for making distinguished contributions to their disciplines.

Grace, '80, a botanist and plant pathologist, joined the USGS National Wetlands Research Center in 1992, following a succesful academic career. The center is in Layfette, LA.

At USGS, he began thinking about large geological systems in a holistic manner. But he found conventional statistical methodology to be lacking. So over time, he helped develop a quantitative framework for analyzing ecological systems with multivariate data. 

The result is a third generation of causal modeling methodology known as structural equation modeling. It's gaining the interest of scientists in a variety of fields.

Grace earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Presbyterian College, a master's degree from Clemson University and a doctoral degree at Michigan State University. His graduate study focused on aquatic ecology.