Timothy Hawthorne, PhD, College of Sciences and Mathematics Faculty and Staff

Short Bio

Timothy L. Hawthorne is Full Professor and Chair in the Department of Geosciences at Auburn University. Dr. Hawthorne is a National Geographic Explorer and Fellow of the American Association of Geographers. He is broadly trained in GIS and human geography with expertise in community geography, geographic education, Participatory GIS, mixed methods, and unoccupied aerial vehicles. In 2015, he founded an internationally recognized research and education group called Citizen Science GIS which is now housed at Auburn University. The group’s goal is to connect scientists, educators, teachers, students, and society with geospatial technologies to make science more accessible and responsive to community concerns. At his previous university, he and his team launched the USA’s first GeoBus, a mobile STEAM education lab powered by solar energy on a repurposed 40-foot city that provides geospatial technology learning experiences to K-12 youth, families, and teachers in Florida. At Auburn, he and his team in early 2025 launched Geo Explorers Labs on a 36-foot Class A RV to serve the state of Alabama and beyond as we introduce students, teachers, and community partners to the breadth of geoscience approaches to science and social studies learning. Since 2012, he has passionately mentored and funded the next generation of geography and GIS in community geography fieldwork experiences in Central America and the USA as Principal Investigator of 4 grants from the NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Teachers Site program. These grants have removed financial barriers to research training and fieldwork experiences centered on community geography and GIS for around 100 participants. Additionally, he has served the discipline of geography as former Associate Editor for Journal of Geography and International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research. Dr. Hawthorne has been an active leader with the American Association of Geographers as current Treasurer of the Geography Education Specialty Group; a long-time speaker in the GTU and AAG Visiting Geographical Scientist Program; and former Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary of the Applied Geography Specialty Group.