Erin Hourihan
RANGELAND SCIENTIST/DATA SPECIALIST
Gatesville,TX
Summary
Rangeland scientist specializing in soil health assessment and grazing system monitoring across diverse western ecosystems. Proven expertise conducting field-based ecological research with focus on soil-plant interactions and ecosystem function. Proficient in quantitative data analysis using R, Python, and GIS to synthesize complex datasets and deliver actionable insights for ranchers, land managers, and conservation professionals. Demonstrated ability to translate technical findings into practical management recommendations through publications, technical reports, and stakeholder engagement. Self-motivated researcher experienced in managing multiple concurrent projects, collaborating with interdisciplinary teams, and thriving in remote work environments.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
2
2
Certifications
Work History
Soil Data Operations Specialist
Soil Health Institute
Remote
01.2023 - Current
- Scale and automate data management flows for multiple landscape scale soil health benchmarking projects.
- Develop and maintain code to ingest soil sampling metadata for more than 1000 sampling locations annually.
- Develop data collection standards and a web-based application the collection of on-farm management activity data.
- Analyzed on-farm managements data in cotton systems to identify trends in adoption of soil health management systems.
Ecological Data Quality Specialist
USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Temple, TX
02.2020 - 01.2023
- Lead ecological data collection protocols and quality assurance processes for multi-site soil survey projects.
- Conduct qualitative and quantitative data analysis of soil-vegetation relationships using R, Excel, and spatial analysis tools to inform land management strategies.
- Completed quality control on more than 200 ecological site descriptions across 12 states in one year.
Ecological Site Specialist
USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service
10.2011 - 02.2020
- Developed data collection plans and completed field inventories.
- Performed data entry, quality control, and data analysis.
- Conducted wetland determinations as vegetation specialist.
- Collaborated with more than 20 soil scientists and technical specialists to complete 6 initial soil surveys.
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Nevada, Reno
01.2009 - 10.2011
- Conducted research on semi-arid rangelands to improve restoration outcomes.
- Collected data, conducted multivariate statistical analysis, and summarized findings into master’s thesis and publicly defended conclusions.
- Published one peer reviewed journal article.
Education
Master of Science - Animal Science
University of Nevada, Reno
Reno, NV05-2011
Bachelor of Science - Forestry and Rangeland Management
University of Nevada, Reno
Reno, NV05-2007
Skills
- Range Science
- Ecology
- Soil Science
- Python, SQL, R
- ArcGIS Pro, Tableau, PowerBI
- Data operations
- Data management
- Data collection
Certification
Springboard - Data Analytics Certificate
Affiliations
Society For Rangeland Management
Timeline
Soil Data Operations Specialist
Soil Health Institute
01.2023 - Current
Ecological Data Quality Specialist
USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service
02.2020 - 01.2023
Ecological Site Specialist
USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service
10.2011 - 02.2020
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Nevada, Reno
01.2009 - 10.2011
Master of Science - Animal Science
University of Nevada, Reno
Bachelor of Science - Forestry and Rangeland Management
University of Nevada, Reno