As the Heard Libraries’ director of research strategies, Stacy Curry-Johnson helps faculty, students and staff make sense of spatial data through geospatial science, methods and technology. She oversees the GIS Lab, which assists and educates on how to visualize and analyze geospatial data and provides Vanderbilt scholars with a deeper understanding of spatial phenomena.
Curry-Johnson is the newly named director of research strategy for the libraries. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading the development and implementation of strategic initiatives that support the research needs of the university community. She is also responsible for identifying emerging trends in research, fostering partnerships across the university, and ensuring that the libraries’ resources and services align with Vanderbilt’s research priorities.
What drew you to your field of expertise, and how did you get started?
In my undergraduate program at Appalachian State, I took a course in physical geography that just kind of spoke to me. I had a professor who said, “Do you want to make some maps?” One little taste of map-making was all it took to embark on my GIS journey. I received bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. degrees in the field of geography focusing on remote sensing, GIS, cartography, 3D modeling, cultural and physical landscapes, and geotechnology.
What’s a unique aspect of the Heard Libraries’ culture that helps you succeed in your role?
The fact that my colleagues and the administration understand what I do and support my work. Having them say, “We get it. We see how you’re impacting students and faculty. This is an important resource that the libraries can offer.” Having a culture that finds value in what we do in the GIS Lab—and having a great support system that promotes our services to others at the university.
Is there a recent project that you’re particularly excited about?
They’re all exciting for me, and it is hard to pick just one! Over the summer, we worked with Associate Professor of Political Science Emily Ritter and her student, Kai Keltner, to help him map all the Native American tribes and how land was allotted across the United States. This was a sizable data set—the first of its kind—where we took all the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) allotment parcel data and extracted from BLM primary sources the individual tribal member to which a particular allotment was assigned. Trial and error led to me writing some Python code to automate the geoprocessing to create the dataset. Then we looked at spatial patterns to see how these allotments lined up around topographic and state boundaries.
After compiling the dataset, we will examine temporal satellite imagery to see what kind of resources are and were available to these different tribes from a land use and land cover perspective. It’s a fascinating project, with so many applications in terms of the ability of tribes to mobilize and participate in advocacy. One of the most enjoyable things from this project was seeing the GIS Lab fully utilized over the summer.