Dr. Chris Payne, C’11

Dr. Chris Payne (C’11), Assistant Professor of Biology at Franciscan University of Steubenville (OH), was awarded Franciscan University’s 2023-2024 Excellence in Scholarship award in April 2025. Highlights of Chris’s scholarly efforts include securing the first (2023) and second (2024) federal research grants in Franciscan's history -- both from USDA APHIS for Chris's ongoing long-term invasive spotted lanternfly research -- as well as publishing four peer-reviewed research articles and presenting 6 presentations at both state and national research conferences in 2023-2024. Despite typically teaching a 6-6 load of undergraduate classes, Chris maintains an active research program with 3-5 students/semester, and his professional/published work covers a diverse range of topics including midwestern invasion dynamics of the spotted lanternfly, long-term forest succession using the world's longest-running permanent sample study, personal vocations, science education, the interconnectedness of faith and science, Catholic environmental stewardship, and the morality of invasive species mitigation. Chris was also a finalist for Franciscan University’s 2023-2024 Excellence in Teaching award.