Kelly Lombardo (PhD, 2011)

Kelly Lombardo, received her Ph.D. in 2011 from SoMAS working with Professor Brian Colle and is now an Associate Professor at Penn State's Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science. At her current position, the job responsibilities that she enjoys most are teaching, developing new courses, and collaborating with her interdisciplinary department

While a Ph.D. student at Stony Brook, Kelly studied the influence of the offshore marine atmospheric boundary layer on severe coastal storms and the processes that degrade or promote the survival of squall lines moving from coastal or inland regions to offshore regions. According to Kelly, SoMAS exposed her to “a wide range of course material, including atmospheric radiation, numerical modeling, synoptic and mesoscale meteorology, atmospheric dynamics, and physical oceanography.”     She identifies one of the more essential tools she learned as a student “was the ability to multitask, a skill I use everyday as a professor.” Kelly would like to see every student as SoMAS “take advantage of every opportunity available even if it doesn’t immediately apply to your current research or career path. There is a good chance that the experiences and knowledge you gain will help you in future endeavors you haven’t anticipated.”