extended SGG author bio:

Steph Jeffries is a naturalist at heart and a forest ecologist by training. Her fascination with the mountains began at the end of a rope, rock climbing in Pisgah National Forest and Linville Gorge while a student earning her B.S. in marine science at the University of South Carolina. After earning a Ph.D. in forestry from North Carolina State University, Steph taught in a variety of university, public, and outdoor settings before returning to NC State as a faculty member in 2011. She also loves teaching at the Highlands Biological Station and the NC Botanical Garden. Outdoors, she shares her passion for ecology and for the natural world with people of all ages — her two sons most especially. She is also an avid runner and has published work in Trail Runner magazine, among other venues. To keep up with Steph, visit her blog, Running with Scissors (stephjeffries.wordpress.com).

Growing up in New England, Tom Wentworth delighted in exploring the mountains, rivers, lakes, and coastal regions of Maine and New Hampshire. After earning his B.A. in biology at Dartmouth College and his Ph.D. in plant ecology at Cornell University, Tom moved to North Carolina, where he has spent nearly four decades on the faculty at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. Tom’s earliest teaching and research ventures led him to the southern Appalachian Mountains, which in many ways resemble the northern mountains he enjoyed as a youth. With the guidance of outstanding mentors, Tom became familiar with the diverse flora and natural communities of the region, especially in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the national forests surrounding Highlands, North Carolina. Tom has shared his love and knowledge of the flora and vegetation of the southern Appalachians with hundreds of students, through field trips in his plant ecology course at NC State and in courses offered through the Highlands Biological Station.