About
Dr. Aimée Classen is an ecologist and Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan. Since 2020, she has been Director of the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS). As director, she provides leadership for 13,000-acre campus and facility that aims to leverage over a century of research and transformative experiences to drive discoveries and solutions to benefit Michigan and beyond.
Aimée researches global change drivers, studying how climate warming, biodiversity loss, and altered biogeochemical cycles affect ecosystems. She authored impactful papers, including an Ecological Society of America Centennial paper on climate change's impact on soil microbial communities, highlighting consequences for ecosystem function and plant communities.
As UMBS Director, Aimée secured $17 million for infrastructure, launched the stations first strategic plan, formed a cross-campus advisory board, and implemented new field safety efforts. She increased campus communication and donor engagement, instituted a family-supportive “kids science camp,” and recruited new research teams to the station.
Previously, she held roles at the University of Vermont, University of Copenhagen, the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. As Editor-in-Chief of Ecological Monographs, she enhanced journal editorial diversity and paper handling transparency, raising its impact factor to 10. She has served on multiple other scientific journal editorial boards and is now serving on the Annual Reviews of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics (AREES) board. She currently serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO) and the Board of Collaborative Earth.
Aimée was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She was honored for her "transformative research that advances both fundamental knowledge regarding ecosystems and the pursuit of a sustainable future, as well as for her exemplary leadership". She was also elected a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America in recognition of her "creative leadership and vision for international research collaborations; for stellar research contributions to the ecology of global environmental change; and for outstanding service to the discipline".
Originally from Kinston, North Carolina, Aimée spent her childhood exploring coastal environments and developed a passion for nature. She furthered her interest during explorations of US rivers and mountains. She was a competitive college swimmer, broke several college records and was an All-American.
Fields of study
Ecosystem ecology, global change, nutrient and carbon cycling, plant-soil interactions, biodiversity
Graduate students
Ariana Di Landro; Brenda Hernandez; Ronan Montgomery-Taylor; Aadia Moseley-McCloud; Giovanna Munoz-Gonzalez; Olivia Vought
Research team
Karin Rand (lab manager); Isabel Thornberry (research tech)
