Dr. Tess Wynn Thompson is an associate professor in biological systems engineering at Virginia Tech where she was a Turner Fellow of Engineering for 2015-2020.  As a self-described “reluctant academic,” she worked for the NC DEQ, as an environmental consultant, and with Maryland Cooperative Extension on water resource protection projects.  It was her experience working with agricultural producers that ultimately prompted her to pursue a PhD and continues to inspire her research and teaching programs.

Dr. Thompson’s research program focuses on the management and restoration of aquatic ecosystems, including the role of vegetation in flow resistance and streambank erosion, mitigating the impacts of urban development on stream systems, and predicting the onset and rate of streambank erosion.  Her recent work exploring the influence of roots and soil microbes in soil erosion resistance was presented to the US Army Corps of Engineers in 2023 in consideration of vegetation management changes for the nearly 4,200 miles of levees operated and maintained by the Corps.  She has produced over 75 peer-reviewed papers, extension publications, and research reports and has mentored 22 MS students, six PhDs, and five post-doctoral scholars, as well as 22 undergraduate researchers and 15 senior design teams.

Dr. Thompson has been an active member in AEES since 2003. She served as Treasurer (2011-2013), Vice-President (2013-2014), and President (2014-2015) and was co-chair for the 2008 and 2024 conferences.  As a member of the AEES Body of Knowledge Committee, she has supported the development and (hopefully soon) approval of ABET criteria for ecological engineering programs.  Dr. Thompson serves on the advisory board for the International Ecological Engineering Society, based in Switzerland and was also appointed to the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee of the Chesapeake Bay Program in 2017.