PrintSummer 2024 (May - July) - Jeff Kling
At other times - Jim Detwiler
Instructor for Summer 2024 (May-July)
Summer 2024 (May - July) - Jeff Kling
At other times - Jim Detwiler
Instructor for Summer 2024 (May-July)
Jeff Kling
Email: Please use the course email system (it ensures your emails don't get caught up in any spam filters). I check email regularly and will do my best to respond to questions at least once per weekday and once on weekends unless I notify you otherwise. If Canvas is down, please try jmk629@psu.edu.
Office hours: By appointment.
I'm very excited to be teaching GEOG 489 - Advanced Python!
My journey into GIS started with being my dad’s navigator during summer breaks. My job was to read the maps and help find the wildlife survey sites and archeological digs we needed to visit. I was fascinated how land features were represented by the contour lines and symbols on the map, and I liked the challenge of using the landscape to orient our location. I joined the Navy in 2004 and performed Geospatial Analysis an Intelligence Specialist, Imagery Interpreter for 9 years. During my time in the Navy, I worked on my Bachelors in Intelligence Studies and completed Penn State University’s GEOINT Certificate program. Post Navy and a a few years later, I returned to PSU and earned a Master’s in GIS. Shortly after graduating, I started grading for GEOG 485, 489, and 863.
As a Senior GIS Software Developer Analyst, I perform a lot of various coding and development tasks to include developing scripts, geoprocessing tools, performing analysis, creating FME processes, and developing custom applications and API’s written in Python, C#, Java, SQL, and the web stack (Javascript, CSS, html).
I'm based in Cheyenne, Wyoming (Mountain Standard Time), and during my off time from work and teaching, I am an avid wood worker and enjoy escaping into the mountains with my wife, daughter, and two dogs.
Contact
Email: Please use the course email system (it ensures your emails don't get caught up in any spam filters). I check email regularly and will do my best to respond to questions at least once per weekday and once on weekends unless I notify you otherwise. If Canvas is down, please try jmk649@psu.edu.
Instructor at other times
Jim Detwiler
2217 EES Building
The Pennsylvania State University,
University Park, PA 16802
Phone: (814) 865-2932 (The country code for the United States is 1)
Email: jed124 (at) psu.edu
Twitter: @DetwilerPSU
AVAILABILITY: Students are welcome to contact me by email any time; I am usually able to respond within 24 hours. If you are a student registered for the course, please use the Canvas email system for course-related correspondence, as I prefer to keep those messages separate from my other email. I am also happy to speak to students over the phone, though it is best to set up an appointment for a phone call.
Welcome to the course!
Hi, I'm Jim Detwiler, your instructor for the next ten weeks. I've been teaching in the Geography Department's online GIS program since 2000. Back then, we had just a one-year, non-credit certificate program with few electives. Today, we offer a Master of GIS degree with numerous electives and several certificates that enable students to focus on application areas of interest to them. I serve as the faculty lead for the Geospatial Programming and Web Map Development Certificate Program. I'm very proud to be associated with these programs, both in terms of the faculty involved and the adult professionals who enroll in them.
I currently teach and maintain the content of GEOG 863: Web Application Development and GEOG 868: Spatial Database Management. I also teach and make minor contributions to GEOG 485: GIS Programming and Automation and GEOG 489: Advanced Python Programming. And I sometimes teach courses on these topics for undergraduates in residence.
My experience with GIS includes working on population-related research projects at Penn State's Population Research Institute, on E911 and cadastral projects at the Chester County (PA) Bureau of Land Records, and on climate-related projects at the University of Delaware. I think this broad experience helps me to relate to my students who use the technology in a wide array of contexts.
Rather than further rehash information that I've made available on other pages, I'll just point you to my work portfolio if you'd like to read more about me. I look forward to getting to know you over the next ten weeks and helping you to learn the course material.
Best of luck in the course!
JIM DETWILER: Hi. I'm Jim Detwiler, a member of Penn State's Online Geospatial Program Faculty. I teach three courses in our program, GIS Programming and Automation, Web Application Development, and Spatial Database Management. I really enjoy teaching in this program because of the consistently high quality of the students that we work with and the working professional population we serve. The main purpose of this video is to give you an opportunity to learn something about one of the people behind the courses that you take.
So let me tell you a little bit about myself. I live just a few miles up the road from State College here, where Penn State's main campus is located, with my beautiful wife and our son. You might be wondering about this building behind me. This is Pegula Ice Arena, where my son and I spend a lot of our free time. He plays youth hockey here and has the misfortune of having me as one of his coaches. And I also get to play here in the world-famous NHL, the Nittany Hockey League. So anyway, thanks for watching. I hope you'll be able to enroll in one of my courses. And if you have any questions about those courses, please don't hesitate to contact me.