John Diercks joined the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and the Department of Meteorology in 1989 with a background in computer services and operational meteorology. His experience was accumulated on various assignments during more than 26 years in the US Air Force's Air Weather Service. These assignments included Commander, Air Force Global Weather Central at Offutt Air Force Base, NE and Director, Joint Typhoon Warning Center on Guam.

Senior Research Associate; 50 percent of appointment with the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and 50 percent with the Department of Meteorology.

Directs support of College-wide computer and network services. Maintains and manages expansion of hosts and communications media for the College high-speed computer network. Provides various computer and network services for College-wide use, including e-mail, security applications, and information servers. Teaches undergraduate meteorology courses. Advises undergraduate meteorology students. Coordinates the Freshmen Testing, Counseling, and Advising Program for the Department of Meteorology. Supervises the College UNIX Administrator/Consultant and Desktop Computer Consultant. Serves on Department, College, and University committees.

Courses| Computer Applications Option| Interests|

• Meteorology 2, Weather and Society.

• Meteorology 22, The Oceans.

• Meteorology 201, Introduction to Weather Analysis and Forecasting.

• Meteorology 414, Mesoscale Meteorology.

• Meteorology 418W, Topics in Mesoscale Meteorology.

• Meteorology 496, Undergraduate Independent Studies.

The Computer Applications Option provides students with the fundamental skills and background to pursue professional employment that combines meteorological skills and computer skills. Graduates with these combined skills are highly sought after in the workplace.

• Mesoscale meteorology.

• Penn State Sports.

• Gardening.

• Stamp Collecting.

Office: 620 Walker Building, University Park, PA 16802

Phone: (814) 863-6089

E-mail: diercks@ems.psu.edu