Ashley is an avian ecologist who has spent 18 years studying avian conservation and management in the US and Caribbean. She received a BA in Zoology from Ohio Wesleyan University, working on a range of avian microbiology projects with her mentor, Dr. Jed Burtt. She completed a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Tulane University and the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, studying population dynamics of migratory songbirds during the nonbreeding season. Following grad school, she became a research scientist at Virginia Tech’s Conservation Management Institute, where she coordinated the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas’ data collection and analyses from 2015-2023. During this time, she also worked on a range of collaborative social science and migratory connectivity projects, incorporating a wide range of both traditional and community science methods. Her current work focuses on applying community science methods to a range of avian conservation questions and data gaps in the Appalachian region. In her spare time, she can typically be found hiking around southwest Virginia, gardening, or chasing her toddler around her place near Pilot (VA). Ashley’s office is in the VA Tech Corporate Research Center.