Welcome

The Department of Biology is a community of teacher-scholars, with faculty representing the full breadth of biological specializations — from molecular genetics to landscape/ecosystem ecology.

Our goal is to provide hands-on experiences through classroom laboratories and undergraduate research.  Our faculty and our 45 graduate students welcome our undergraduate majors to engage in independent research ongoing in 23 labs, plant, animal and fungal research/teaching collections, a greenhouse, a sixty-seven acre Nature Preserve adjacent to campus and larger land holdings in the area, as well as access to extensive globally significant surrounding state and federal parks and forests. 

We seek to enable our graduates to gain sound scientific knowledge, learn the skills needed to create new knowledge, the excitement and appreciation of scientific discovery, and the ability to convey that information and enthusiasm to society.  We are dedicated to engaging students in outstanding teaching and we believe that our research and discovery inform the science that we teach.

Department Spotlights

Faculty & Staff

Dr. Shea Tuberty, professor in Appalachian State University's Department of Biology and director of the university's Quality Enhancement Plan.

Dr. Tuberty received a Spring 2023 Student and Faculty Excellence (SAFE) grant to cover expenses for the Carolinas' Area Benthologists Workshop held at Appalachian State's Department of Biology, and Camp...

Alumni

Picture of Erin McCombs

What do you currently do?

I am the Conservation Director for Southern Appalachia with American Rivers. American Rivers is a national river advocacy organization headquartered in...

Graduate Students

How did you become interested in biology?

Learning about the nervous system in my psychology class really sparked the intrigue for biological processes. What drew me...