Andrew O. Finley

Andrew O. Finley is a Professor at Michigan State University with a joint appointment in the Departments of Forestry and Statistics & Probability. He is also affiliated with the Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior Graduate Program. His research focuses on environmental statistics, Bayesian methods, spatial statistics, and statistical computing, particularly in monitoring and modeling ecological processes. He leads the Geospatial Lab, supported by NSF, NASA, USDA Forest Service, and NPS grants, utilizing a Linux cluster for large-scale data analysis.

Education:

• PhD in Natural Resources Science and Management (University of Minnesota, 2006)
• MS in Statistics (University of Minnesota, 2007)
• MS in Forestry (University of Massachusetts, 2003)
• BS in Forestry (Pennsylvania State University, 2000)

Research Interests:

Finley develops statistical methodologies for integrating disparate data sources to study environmental processes, with applications in spatial-temporal modeling of ecosystems. His work emphasizes hierarchical models, Bayesian approaches, and scalable geostatistical techniques for large datasets. Recent projects include analyzing tree species decline in western U.S. forests, bird abundance using acoustic data, and ecological memory in boreal tree growth.

Advising & Grants:

He mentors graduate students in statistical ecology and computational methods. Current advisees include Elliot Shannon, Grayson White, and Hunter Stanke. His lab has secured funding from NSF, NASA, and USDA for projects on forest dynamics, biodiversity, and geostatistical modeling. Notable software contributions include the R packages spBayes, spNNGP, and rFIA for spatial analysis and forest inventory.

Labs & Collaborations:

The Geospatial Lab at Michigan State University focuses on advancing statistical methods for environmental data science. Collaborations include work on macrosystems ecology, climate change impacts, and integrating remote sensing with field data for forest management.