Education
■Ph.D., University College London, United Kingdom
■B.Sc., Lancaster University, United Kingdom

Research
Dr. Jennifer Collins has been teaching at a university for over 13 years. Her research focuses on weather and climate. As a hurricane researcher, Dr. Collins is interested in the interaction between large scale climatic patterns such as the El Niño – Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Madden – Julian Oscillation and seasonal patterns of tropical cyclone activity in multiple oceanic basins. She is currently studying the environmental factors influencing the interannual variation of hurricane numbers in the Northeast Pacific and she is examining relationships between hurricane numbers in the Atlantic versus those in part of the Northeast Pacific ocean basin. She is also investigating sea surface temperatures in the Pacific using a new sea surface temperature change parameter and relating this to Atlantic hurricane activity. This work is being extended to other ocean basins. As well as her work in the physical sciences she also works in the social sciences as she begins work on behavior relating to hurricane evacuation. In addition to her hurricane work, Dr. Collins works in other areas related to weather, climate and hazards. She works closely on projects with the National Weather Service involving tornados and fog. In addition, she collaborates with international researchers and works in the area of climate change. She is currently examining temperature changes in South America and Africa. Dr. Collins is the President of the West Central Florida Chapter of the American Meteorological Society, Director of the Climate Specialty Group of the Association of American Geographers and serves on the National Weather Association’s Specialized Operations Committee on Tropical Cyclones.