Dr. Kathleen Stewart has an extraordinary record of accomplishment in advancing geographic

information science, expanding and strengthening geographic information science education, and building communities and networks to foster multi-disciplinary GIS research and education. She has been conducting research in Geographic Information Science for over 25 years at the University of Maine, the University of Iowa, and currently at the University of Maryland where she is Director for the Center for Geospatial Information Science.

She has served as principal investigator, co-principal investigator, or senior personnel on

research and training grants totaling well over $20 million including from, among several other sources, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Transportation. Dr. Stewart has authored or co-authored over 70 articles in refereed scholarly journals, fully refereed scientific conference proceedings, and chapters in refereed books. Her standing in the academic community has been recognized by appointments to the Geographical and Geospatial Science Committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and the National Geospatial Advisory Committee of the Department of the Interior.

In earlier years, Kathleen’s research focused on data models, ontology, and spatiotemporal modeling. Recent research has migrated more into utilizing the theory and models of GIScience in studying significant societal problems, such as health and diseases, drug use, crime analysis, and human mobility. In her most frequently cited paper Identity-Based Change: A Foundation for Spatio-Temporal Knowledge Representation (IJGIS 2000) she developed a model that is based on the explicit description of change with respect to states of existence and non- existence for identifiable objects. It excels for simplicity and comprehensiveness, forming one of the few theoretical models for spatio-temporal modeling. Another important article of hers addressed the modeling of moving objects over multiple granularities, expanding on Hägerstrand’s seminal Time Geography. Her domain research in spatial health has built on her past work with such abstract models.

Her contributions to GIScience education are highly significant. As first advisor, she has supervised to completion eleven PhD dissertations, advised three post-docs, and was the advisor of thirteen MS students. She was co-PI of the NSF IGERT Geoinformatics for Environmental and Energy Modeling and Prediction.

Dr. Stewart’s service to the professional community is also of high caliber. She is Associate Editor of Computers, Environment, and Urban Systems and has served as a member of ten editorial boards. She further served the GIScience community with the organization or co-organization of 30 professional events.

Kathleen’s contributions to the UCGIS community have been extensive. She co-organized the 2017 UCGIS Annual Meeting and has served in the past as Chair and Vice-Chair of the UCGIS Research Committee, Member of the Board of Directors, and member of the Research Awards and Nominating Committees.

Due to her outstanding and long-lasting track record that spans across research, education, and service to the community, UCGIS is very pleased to name Dr. Kathleen Stewart as a UCGIS Fellow.