Allen J McGrew
- Phone: 937-229-5638
- Email: Contact
Profile
Dr. McGrew began his teaching career at the University of Dayton in the Fall of 1995, and teaches courses in introductory geology and earth science, engineering geology, structural geology, and igneous and metamorphic petrology. He specializes in tectonics, the study of mountain-building processes, and his interests have taken him to a wide variety of settings around the world from the western U.S. Cordillera to South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. He has a passion for field research in mountainous terrains and has frequently engaged undergraduate students in research on and off-campus. He is also interested in service-learning, and together with his wife and fellow teacher, Heidi McGrew, he has innovated a program called Field Trip to Planet Earth that provides introductory earth science students with opportunities to develop hands-on educational activities for elementary school children in the Dayton area. He is also committed to interdisciplinary education and is currently partnering with faculty from Sociology and Civil Engineering to develop opportunities for interdisciplinary study both on-campus and abroad.
The Faculty Perspective
My passion for teaching and research stems from seeds that were planted by my teachers and mentors during my own education. I seek to repay this debt by challenging and engaging my students to explore this dynamic and ever-surprising planet just as my mentors challenged me. This Earth has a history that is at once deep, intricate and profoundly important, impinging both on our understanding of ourselves and our ability to survive. Since my first view of mountains thrusting improbably upward to grasp the sky, I have been intrigued by how they form and what they indicate about this dynamic planet. What forces operate inside this Earth to lift some rocks into the air while sinking others to the floor of the sea? Why are such motions concentrated in certain areas, and what factors control how they evolve through time? Moreover, how do the large-scale physical structures and tectonic behavior of our planet dictate the distribution of resources and hazards that affect our ability to survive? These are a few of the questions that motivate my interests in teaching and research.
Degrees
- Ph.D., University of Wyoming
Research Interests
- Structural Geology
- Regional Tectonics
- Petrology
- Engineering Geology
Selected Publications
Rahl, J. M., and A. J. McGrew, and Foland, K.A., 2002, Transition from Contraction to extension in the northestern Basin and Range: New evidence from the Copper Mountains, Nevada, Journal of Geology, 110, p. 179-194.
McGrew, A.J., and M.T. Peters, and Wright, J.E., 2000, Thermobarometric constraints on the tectonothermal evolution of the northern East Humboldt Range metamorphic core complex, Nevada, Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 112, p. 45-60.
Kleinschrodt, R., and McGrew, A.J., 2000, Garnet plasticity in the lower continental crust: Implications for deformation mechanisms based on microstructures and SEM electron channeling pattern analysis, Journal of Structural Geology, v. 22, p. 795-809.
Casey, M., and McGrew, A. J., 1999, One dimensional kinematic model of preferred orientation development, Tectonophysics, 303, p. 131-140.
McGrew, A.J., and M. Casey, 1998, Quartzite fabric transition in a Cordilleran metamorphic core complex, in Snoke, A.W., Tullis, J.A., and Todd, V.R., eds., The Atlas of Mylonitic and Fault-related Rocks, p. 484-489.
Camilleri, P., and A. J. McGrew, 1997, Hinterland to foreland transect through the Sevier orogen, northeast Nevada to north central Utah: Part Two - The architecture of the Sevier hinterland: A crustal transect through the Pequop Mountains, Wood Hills, and East Humboldt Range, Nevada, in Link, K. P., Kowallis, Bart J., ed., Geological Society of America Field Trip Guide Book, 1997 Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah: Part One - Proterozoic to Recent Stratigraphy, Tectonics, and Volcanology, Utah, Nevada, Southern Idaho and Central Mexico: Brigham Young University Geology Studies, p. 310-324.