Latif Kalin
Auburn University Alumni and Clinton-McClure Professor Latif Kalin has been named associate dean of research and graduate programs in Auburn’s College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment (CFWE) following an internal search.
As associate dean, Kalin will advise graduate students as the college’s graduate programs officer and collaborate with faculty and staff to facilitate contracts and expand extramural funding opportunities to advance the CFWE’s multidisciplinary research platform.
“Since joining the CFWE faculty in 2006, Dr. Kalin has accrued a strong record of research excellence, mentorship and service that exemplify the qualities necessary for this role,” said Janaki Alavalapati, the Emmett F. Thompson Dean of the CFWE. “We anticipate he will provide decisive leadership and proactive support for CFWE faculty, staff, graduate students and research centers, including the Center for Natural Resource Management on Military Lands (CNRMML), to advance the college’s research excellence and graduate education.”
Kalin’s research and teaching focus on modeling water quality and quantity, including the study of pollutant removal in natural and constructed wetlands, as well as the impacts of land use and land cover change on water quality and quantity. He has authored 104 refereed journal articles and 13 book chapters and served as principal investigator (PI) or Co-PI on more than $15 million in competitive grants, primarily funded by federal agencies such as the FAA, USDA, EPA and NOAA.
During his career, Kalin’s scholarly contributions have been recognized through multiple honors. Most recently, he was named Auburn Alumni Professor in 2020, Fulbright Scholar in Brazil in 2022 and Provost Fellow in the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program for 2023–2024. This year, Kalin was also selected as an Auburn Research Communications Fellow.
Within the broader scientific community, Kalin has served on grant review panels for several government agencies and as a science advisor to the EPA on a Clean Water Act technical report and as a member of the Science Advisory Board of the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program. He has also chaired national committees, including the Association of Civil Engineers Environmental Water Resource Institute (ASCE-EWRI) Surface Water and Wetland Hydrology Technical Committee and the USDA Multistate Research Project S1089, which recently received the Southeastern Region Excellence in Multistate Research Award.
At Auburn, Kalin’s record of service includes leadership and membership in several university-level committees, including the International Advisory Council, the Computational and Infrastructure Working Group, the Council of Energy, Environment and Economic Research, the Graduate Council and the Senate Competitive Research Grant Committee.
Prior to this role, Kalin held the position of associate director of the CFWE’s Center for Environmental Studies at the Urban-Rural Interface. He received a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the Middle East Technical University in Turkey and his master’s and doctoral degrees in civil engineering from Purdue University.
Kalin will succeed Daowei Zhang, the CFWE Alumni and George W. Peake, Jr. Endowed Professor of Forestry, as associate dean effective Jan. 1, 2026.
With a strong record of scholarly achievement, extensive leadership experience and a deep commitment to advancing interdisciplinary research, Kalin is well-suited for the position.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the CFWE as associate dean for research,” said Kalin. “I look forward to working alongside our talented faculty, staff and students to build on our strengths and create new opportunities for impactful research and engagement.”
Learn more about Kalin at cfwe.auburn.edu.
(Written by Jamie Anderson)
