Curriculum Vitae

Amanda Rea McGee Cleveland Museum of Natural History 1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle Cleveland, Ohio, 41106 Email: [email protected] Phone: 216-231-4600 ext. 3275

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Date of Birth: 2 December, 1983 Citizenship: Canadian

ACADEMIC BACKGROUND

Master of Museum Studies 2011 - 2013 Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario Select Coursework: Collection Management, Museum Environments, Curating Science, Exhibition Project, Exhibition, Interpretation, and Communication, Curatorial Practice, Ethics, Leadership and Management, Museums and New Media Practice, Museums and their Publics.

Master of Science, Specialization in Vertebrate Palaeontology 2008 - 2011 Department of Geoscience, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta Thesis title: A fossilized turtle egg clutch with embryos from the Upper Cretaceous Oldman Formation, southeastern Alberta: Description, taxonomic identity, and embryonic staging (Supervisor: Darla K. Zelenitsky)

Bachelor of Science, Honours Specialization in Geology and Biology 2002 - 2007 Department of Earth Sciences, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario Thesis title: Faunal composition, palaeoecology and taphonomy of the Microcyclus bed from the Middle Devonian Arkona Shale, Southwestern Ontario (Supervisor: Cameron J. Tsujita)

WORK EXPERIENCE

January 2015 – Present: Collections Manager, Vertebrate Paleontology. Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio. Oversee the daily operation of the Vertebrate Paleontology collection including: updating the current database system, inventorying specimens, supervising volunteers and students, facilitating incoming and outgoing loans, and ordering supplies. Organize summer fieldwork expeditions, excavate fossil material, and catalog specimens in the field. Consult with design companies contracted to redesign exhibits for the new museum in terms of scientific content and specimen selection.

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April 2014 – November 2014: Collections Management and Preparation Lab Intern. Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Prepare fossil material from surrounding rock matrix and assist in the curators’ summer fieldwork programs. Coordinate the gallery preparation table exhibit by gathering required tools and materials, filling out request forms and preparations sheets for specimens, and training new staff on daily procedures and visitor services etiquette. Properly number and photograph prepared specimens. Update specimen information and convert data to a newer format in the catalog database.

April 2013 – March 2014: Palaeobiology Collections Management Volunteer. Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario. Updated labeling and storage of palaeoichthyology specimens. Performed inventory checks on acanthodian specimens and enter backlogged data into the database. Updated written and digital records of specimens.

December 2012 – April 2013: Palaeobiology Technical Assistant. Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario. Sorted and identified microfossil (invertebrate and vertebrate) material under a binocular microscope.

January – April 2013: Teaching Assistant. University of Toronto, Department of Earth Sciences. Geology 217 - Earth Evolution. Instructed students during weekly laboratory assignments for an undergraduate invertebrate paleontology class. Assisted students with fossil identification and encouraged enthusiasm and excitement for the subject matter. Organized lab material and set up weekly demonstrations.

May – August 2012: Palaeobiology Collections Management Intern. Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario. Upgraded storage for type specimen material in the vertebrate paleontology collection by creating custom ethafoam drawer linings that contoured to the morphology of the bones. Provided conservation treatments to specimens in need of repair and consolidation. Re-labeled specimens with updated catalogue numbers.

June – August 2011; May – August 2009: Preparation Technician and Field Assistant. Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Demonstrated the scientific methods of fossil preparation at a table in the galleries. Identified fossil and geologic specimens visitors brought to the museum. Prepared fossil vertebrate specimens from surrounding rock matrix and sorted microvertebrate material from screen washed sediment. Participated in fieldwork, which included prospecting for fossil sites, excavation, and jacketing specimens.

September 2008 – December 2010: Teaching Assistant. University of Calgary, Department of Geoscience. Geology 203 - Principles of Geology and Geophysics II; Geology 305 - Introduction to Dinosaurs; Geology 491 – Paleobiology. Instructed the laboratory component of undergraduate courses in paleontology and geology, providing engaging demonstrations for each assignment. Organized lab material and set up weekly demonstrations. Promptly evaluated and graded exams and lab assignments.

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September – December 2008: Research Assistant. University of Calgary, Department of Geoscience. Catalogued fossil and extant specimens of various taxa, including birds, dinosaurs, fish, crocodiles, and turtles. Prepared lecture and tutorial materials for an undergraduate course in paleontology.

SELECT PROJECTS

September 2012 – March 2013: Dunlap Institute Exhibition Curator. Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics and Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. Co-curated an exhibition entitled “Innovators in Instrumentation: Advancing Astronomy at the Dunlap Institute” that showcases astronomical research at the University of Toronto. Scheduled all collection visits during the initial research and object selection phase of the project. Collaborated with researchers at the Dunlap Institute and Royal Astronomical Society to generate content and write text panels pertaining to Arctic astronomy and historical instrumentation at the Institute. Created a written and photographic inventory of all instruments that went into the exhibition. Participated in the installation of objects and wall hangings in the exhibition space.

September – December 2012: Visitor Researcher and Project Coordinator. Royal Ontario Museum and Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. Developed instruments, including a questionnaire, a tracking map and behavior checklist, to analyze visitor experiences in the temporary exhibition “Ultimate Dinosaurs: Giants of Gondwana”. Tracked visitor movement throughout the space and collected responses from visitors, and analyzed data using qualitative and quantitative methods. Coordinated all communications between the group, course instructor, and the Manager of Audience Insight at the ROM. Wrote the results section of the group report as well as edited final document. Presented findings to ROM staff and submitted a final report.

September – December 2012: New Media Project Interpretive Planner. Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. Co-developed content for a project which proposes a revitalization of permanent ROM galleries through the use of the new media platform SoundCloud. Accessed the interpretive plan in terms of accessibility for the target audience and demonstrated the usability of application in a short instructional video.

January – April 2012: Conservation Consultant. Royal Ontario Museum and Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. Developed a conservation assessment report for the Vertebrate Paleontology collection at the ROM, which outlined health and safety concerns, and included mitigative measures that would extend the longevity of the collections and prevent undue harm to specimens and personnel.

PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS

Zelenitsky, D. K., Therrien, F., Ridgely, R. C., McGee, A. R., and L. M. Witmer. 2011. Evolution of olfaction in non-avian theropod dinosaurs and birds. Proc. R. Soc. B., 278: 3625-3634.

SEMINARS AND INVITED LECTURES

McGee, A. March 2015. Fossil turtle eggs and turtles from Southern Alberta. Cleveland Geologic Society and the North Coast Fossil Club, Cleveland, Ohio. McGee, Page 4

McGee, A. March, 2010. Turtle eggs and embryos from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta. John Carroll University, Cleveland, OH

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

McGee, A., Charette, N., Goddard, O. and Megaffin, D. 2013. youROaM: A new way of experiencing the Royal Ontario Museum’s permanent galleries. Theory, Practice & Praxis Graduate Student Conference. March 22, 2013. Toronto, Ontario (poster)

McGee, A. and Zelenitsky, D. 2011. Preliminary report on the fossilized turtle embryos from the Oldman Formation (Late Campanian, Upper Cretaceous) of Southern Alberta. Dinosaur Research Institute dinner (2010) and Alberta Paleontological Society Symposium (2011) (poster)

McGee, A. and Zelenitsky, D. 2009. Preliminary report on the fossilized turtle embryos from the Oldman Formation (Late Campanian, Upper Cretaceous) of Southern Alberta. Gaffney Turtle Symposium Abstract Volume. pg. 115. October 16-19. Drumheller, Alberta (poster)

McGee, A. and Tsujita, C. 2007. Faunal composition, paleoecology and taphonomy of the Microcyclus bed from the Middle Devonian Arkona Shale, Southwestern Ontario. Canadian Paleontological Conference Abstracts Volume. p. 19. September 20-23. St. John’s, Newfoundland (oral)

LABORATORY EXPERIENCE

April 2014 – November 2014: Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Manually prepare ceratopsian bonebed material and marine reptile specimens from surrounding matrix. Sort microvertebrate material from the Scollard Formation of Alberta.

December 2012 – March 2014: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario. Sorted Pleistocene microfossil (invertebrate and vertebrate) material from the Don Valley, Toronto, Ontario. Prepared ceratopsian bonebed material from surrounding matrix.

May – August 2012: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario. Removed paint and previous treatments to ornithischian type specimens and reconsolidated skeletal elements. Repaired previous breaks of type specimens. Removed the skull cap of Dyoplosaurus from its mount and removed embedded plaster. Helped prepare a display jacket for a sauropod femur and tibia, on loan from the Field Museum. Created casts of fossil bird limb bones.

May – August 2011: Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Sorted microvertebrate material and prepared specimens from Coronosaurus brinkmani bonebed.

January 2011: Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Imaged fossil and modern eggshell fragments using a scanning electron microscope (SEM).

January 2010 - January 2011: University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta. Digitally prepared fossil material from computed tomography (CT) scans using Amira® software.

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May – August 2009: Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller, Alberta. Prepared and jacketed vertebral elements of Gorgosaurus libratus and screen washed microvertebrate specimens.

November 2008: University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta. Prepared and separated microfossils through acetic acid etching, bleaching, and heavy liquid separation of the organic elements. Sorted through remaining sediment for conodonts.

November 2006 – February 2007: University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario. Prepared rugose coral specimens and created thin sections of corals in situ.

FIELD EXPERIENCE

August 2015: Cleveland Shale Member, Ohio Shale Formation, Cleveland, Ohio. Prospecting for fossil sharks and arthrodires. Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

July – August 2015: Milk River and Oldman Formations, Milk River Natural Area, Alberta. Excavation of tyrannosaur, hadrosaur, and ceratopsian material from various localities in southern Alberta. Cataloged all fossil material collected during the field season. Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

October 2014: Horseshoe Canyon Formation, Horsetheif Canyon, Drumheller, Alberta. Site investigations and prospecting potential sites. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

August – September 2014: Horseshoe Canyon Formation, Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park, Alberta. Excavation of fish and plant specimens from a fossil fish locality. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

June – September 2014: Horseshoe Canyon Formation, Tolman Alberta. Excavation at an Arrhinoceratops quarry. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

June 2014: Dinosaur Park Formation, Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta. Excavation at Bonebed 42 (Styracosaurus). Royal Tyrell Museum.

July 2012: Oldman and Dinosaur Park Formations, Milk River Natural Area, Alberta. Excavation of ceratopsian material and removal of overburden from new ceratopsian site. Southern Alberta Dinosaur Project.

August 2011: Dinosaur Park Formation of Judith River Group, Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta. Prospecting for potential quarry sites, excavation of ceratopsian material, and collection of microvertebrate material. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

June 2011: Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Edmonton Group, Nacmine, Alberta. Excavation at an ornithomimid quarry. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

July 2010: Oldman Formation of Judith River Group, Milk River Natural Area, Alberta. Excavation at a Daspletosaurus quarry, prospecting, creation of a stratigraphic column. University of Calgary.

June 2009: Oldman Formation of Judith River Group, Milk River Natural Area, Alberta. Excavation at a hadrosaur quarry, site investigation, and microvertebrate collection. Royal Tyrrell Museum. McGee, Page 6

May 2009: Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Edmonton Group, Horsetheif Canyon, Drumheller, Alberta. Excavation of hadrosaur material. Royal Tyrrell Museum.

November 2006: Arkona Shale Formation of the Hamilton Group, Arkona, Ontario. Collection of rugose coral (Microcyclus) specimens and rock samples. Dr. Cameron Tsujita Laboratory, University of Western Ontario – material for undergraduate thesis.

HONOURS AND AWARDS

2012: Vivian and David Campbell Fellowship ($2,000) – University of Toronto 2011: Dean's Master of Museum Studies Scholarship ($3,000) – University of Toronto 2010: Grant Spratt Graduate Scholarship in Geology ($1,100) – University of Calgary 2010: Alberta Graduate Student Scholarship ($3,000) – Alberta Learning: Government of Alberta 2009: Thesis Research Grant ($1,000) – University of Calgary 2009: Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship ($7,200) – University of Calgary 2009: Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship ($3,600) – University of Calgary 2007: Ontario Petroleum Institute Thesis Award ($300) – Ontario Petroleum Institute 2007: Charles A. Southworth Memorial Award – University of Western Ontario 2002: Entrance Scholarship ($750) – University of Western Ontario

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology  Alberta Palaeontological Society  Paleontological Society  Geological Society of America

REFERENCES

Available upon request.