Catherine Fahey joined the Biology faculty at Kenyon in 2025. Her research investigates how plants interact with the diverse microbial communities that live in and around them — and how these hidden relationships influence plant health, growth, and resilience. Using field experiments and molecular approaches, she explores how global change drivers such as climate change, invasive species, and biodiversity loss alter plant-microbe interactions.

Her work has spanned a wide range of ecosystems, primarily in forests ranging from tropical forests in Panama to boreal forests of Northern Ontario, but also grasslands and agricultural systems. By studying these diverse environments, she aims to understand how ecological interactions and biodiversity can help ecosystems remain resilient in a rapidly changing world.

Fahey is also a research associate at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Maryland, where she studies how biodiversity supports the resilience and function of forest ecosystems.

Areas of Expertise

Plant-microbe interactions, global change ecology, community ecology, mycorrhizae

Education

2018 — Doctor of Philosophy from University of Florida

2014 — Master of Science from University of Florida

2010 — Bachelor of Science from Cornell University

Courses Recently Taught

This is the first laboratory course a student takes and is a prerequisite for all upper-division laboratory courses- required for the major. Students are introduced to the processes of investigative biology and scientific writing. Laboratories cover topics presented in the core lecture courses, BIOL 115 and 116, and introduce a variety of techniques and topics, including field sampling, microscopy, PCR, gel electrophoresis, enzyme biochemistry, physiology, evolution and population biology. The course emphasizes the development of inquiry skills through active involvement in experimental design, data collection and management, statistical analysis, integration of results with information reported in the literature, and writing in a format appropriate for publication. The year culminates in six-week student-designed investigations that reinforce the research skills developed during the year. Evaluation is based on laboratory notebooks, lab performance and scientific papers, as well as oral and written presentations summarizing the independent project. Prerequisite: completion or concurrent enrollment in BIOL 115 or equivalent.

Ecology is the study of the distribution and abundance of organisms and the structure and dynamics of the biosphere. Topics include physiological ecology; population ecology; competition; predator-prey systems; mutualism; succession; energy and nutrient dynamics; and the ecology of communities, ecosystems and the biosphere. We also explore the influence of humans on natural systems. Students use theoretical models and primary literature to supplement the text, lectures and discussions. This counts toward the upper-level environmental biology requirement for the biology major and as an elective for the environmental studies major. Co-enrollment in BIOL 229 is highly recommended. Prerequisite: BIOL 115 or equivalent.