Rick Brazier

Rick Brazier is a Professor of Mathematics and Geology at Penn State DuBois and serves as Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Research overseeing 14 Commonwealth Campuses within the University College. His role includes managing faculty development, promotions, sabbaticals, and grant proposals. Brazier joined Penn State in 1996 as a research associate in the EMS department before transitioning to teaching and tenure-line faculty roles.

His research focuses on seismicity analysis, tectonic processes, and lithospheric dynamics in regions like East Africa, Ethiopia, and West Antarctica. Key areas include crustal seismicity patterns, mantle structure modeling, and the application of genetic algorithms for geophysical data inversion.

Brazier has contributed to over a dozen peer-reviewed publications since 1998, addressing topics such as seismic calibration, mantle velocity structures, and stress regimes. His work spans empirical ground-truth criteria development, regional network optimization, and the interplay between Precambrian lithospheric features and modern tectonic processes.