GORDON HEINGARTNER
2626 Chamberlain Ave
Madison, WI 53705
(608) 218-1367
gheingartner@yahoo.com
OBJECTIVE
A position utilizing my proven abilities and interests in the Earth Sciences, Natural
Resources/Environment, Science Teaching/Education, Science Outreach/Communications, and/or
Radio News Production in the service of an academic institution, government agency, nonprofit,
or private firm.
SUMMARY OF SKILLS

BA in Geology, College of Wooster, Wooster, OH; MS in Geology, San Jose State
University, San Jose, CA

Earth Science teaching experience at introductory and intermediate college levels with
students of varying ages, backgrounds, and abilities.

Research experience – conducted original USGS-sponsored research examining
earthquake hazards posed by the San Andreas fault in the Bay Area of California

Communications and community outreach – produced weekly news program on local
community radio station for past six years, which has afforded me the opportunity to
develop a broad network of community connections and relationships as well as a keen
awareness of public issues and affairs of local, regional, and statewide concern

Outgoing personality with excellent interpersonal skills that enhance internal/external
working relationships and cooperation among interested groups and parties

Recipient of Outstanding Graduate Thesis award at San Jose State University

Leadership ability that generates positive results while fostering teamwork and strong
collaborative energies
EXAMPLES OF EXPERTISE
1) PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS – Produced – and reported for – weekly local independent
radio news show on Madison community radio station WORT for six years running.
Responsible for production of a timely and relevant local newscast each week, including selection
of news content; contacting potential guests and setting up interviews; conducting, recording, and
editing interviews; script writing and editing; on-air direction of the show; and coordination and
management of other members of the news team, all of which is performed under tight deadline
pressure.
2) RESEARCH / WRITING – Conducted original research into earthquake recurrence along
a segment of the San Andreas fault in northern California.
Work included excavation of exploratory trenches across active fault zone; detailed logging of
structure and stratigraphy of exposed sedimentary deposits; identification of historic and
prehistoric earthquake events in the sedimentary record; radiometric dating of charcoal and other
organic material; and presentation of findings in the form of my master’s thesis – which was
awarded San Jose State University’s Outstanding Graduate Thesis – as well as various talks and
presentations for scientific and general audiences.
3) TEACHING / LECTURING – Taught a variety of introductory and intermediate level
geology classes at various colleges and universities in California and Wisconsin.
Classes taught include Physical Geology, Oceanography, Historical Geology, Environmental
Geology, and Mineralogy. Sparked diverse groups of students’ interest in the earth sciences,
many of whom had not been exposed to them before.
4) PROJECT MANAGEMENT – Managed, coordinated, and conducted all phases of
geologic hazard investigations for various consulting firms.
Responsible for management and coordination of multiple ongoing residential and commercial
projects. Duties included preparation of job proposals; formulation and management of project
budgets; coordination of field work and other logistical matters; performance of field work;
interpretation of aerial photographs; preparation of maps and geologic cross sections; and
preparation of technical reports summarizing relevant findings.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Madison Water Utility, Madison, WI
6/04 to 12/08
Engineering Aide, Systems and Mapping Group
Worked with GIS-based water distribution system maps, models, and database management
systems; assisted with various engineering-related tasks in the office and field, including data
entry, leak detection surveys, hand drafting, and GPS work.
UW-Whitewater, Whitewater, WI
8/01 to 5/04; 9/05 to 12/05
Lecturer
Taught classes in Historical Geology, Environmental Geology, and Mineralogy (lecture and
laboratory) as well as numerous Introductory Physical Geology labs.
Edgewood College, Madison, WI
8/01 to 5/02
Adjunct Instructor
Taught introductory classes in Physical Geology and Oceanography (lecture and laboratory).
D & M Consulting Engineers, Inc, San Jose, CA
7/99 to 8/00
Project Geologist
Managed, conducted, and coordinated all aspects of geologic hazard investigations for residential,
commercial, and government properties, including proposal writing, budget formulation, field
work, research, aerial photograph interpretation, drafting, geologic analysis, and report writing.
College of San Mateo, San Mateo, CA
6/99 to 8/00
Adjunct Instructor
Taught introductory classes in Physical Geology (based on Earth Revealed video series) and
Oceanography.
Associated Terra Consultants, Inc., Los Gatos, CA
2/98 to 7/99
Staff Geologist
Conducted all phases of geologic hazard investigations for residential properties, including
fieldwork, drafting, report writing, and project administration.
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA
10/94 to 12/96
Radiocarbon Laboratory Technician
Prepared samples for radiocarbon dating by accelerator mass spectrometry; duties included
pretreatment, combustion, and graphitization of samples (I fulfilled a work/study appointment
from the San Jose State University Foundation in which I spent a portion of my time working on
samples from my thesis site).
Upp Geotechnology, San Jose, CA
4/90 to 3/91
Staff Geologist
Logged geology of drilled foundation piers; assisted in observation and interpretation of fault
trenches and exploratory test pits; performed field soil density tests; and conducted various
laboratory soils tests.
VOLUNTEER WORK
I have served as a producer/reporter for In Our Backyard, a local independent news program on
community radio station WORT in Madison, Wisconsin, on a weekly basis since the fall of 2002,
during which time I have managed and coordinated diverse groups of volunteer writers and
reporters and gained a multitude of contacts with – as well as a deeper sense of connection to –
the community at large.
AWARDS RECEIVED
My Master’s thesis, entitled Paleoseismic Recurrence Investigation of the Santa Cruz Mountains
Segment of the San Andreas Fault near Watsonville, California, was awarded San Jose State
University’s Outstanding Graduate Thesis for the 1998-99 academic year. My research resulted
in the determination of an average recurrence interval for large magnitude earthquakes along an
understudied segment of the northern San Andreas fault by identifying and dating earthquake
events exposed in the walls of trenches excavated across the fault zone.
RESEARCH PRESENTATIONS
Heingartner, G.F., and Schwartz, D.P., 1996, Paleoseismic evidence for large magnitude
earthquakes along the San Andreas fault in the southern Santa Cruz Mountains, California (abs):
EOS, 757446, F462 (oral presentation of my thesis work at annual meeting of the American
Geophysical Union in San Francisco).
Fumal, T.E., Heingartner, G.F., Dawson, T., Flowers, R., Kessler, J., Samrad, L., and Schwartz,
D.P., 2002, Timing and Slip of Large Earthquakes on the San Andreas fault, Santa Cruz
Mountains, California – Arano Flat: USGS Open-File Report (poster).
Fumal, T.E., Heingartner, G.F., Dawson, T., Flowers, R., Hamilton, J.C., Kessler, J., Samrad, L.,
and Schwartz, D.P., 2002, Timing and Slip of Large Earthquakes on the San Andreas fault, Santa
Cruz Mountains, California – Mill Canyon: USGS Open-File Report (poster).
Fumal, T.E., Heingartner, G.F., Dawson, T., Flowers, R., Hamilton, J.C., Kessler, J., Samrad, L.,
Reidy, L.M., Seitz, G.G., Southon, J., 2003, A 100-Year Average Recurrence Interval for the San
Andreas Fault, Southern San Francisco Bay Area, California: USGS Open-File Report (poster).
Fumal, Thomas E.; Dawson, Timothy E.; Flowers, Rebecca; Hamilton, John C.; Heingartner,
Gordon F.; Kessler, James; Samrad, Laura, 2004, Photomosaics and Logs of Trenches on the San
Andreas Fault at Mill Canyon near Watsonville, California: USGS Open-File Report 2003-469.
Fumal, Thomas E.; Heingartner, Gordon F.; Samrad, Laura; Dawson, Timothy E.; Hamilton, John
C.; Baldwin, John N., 2004, Photomosaics and Logs of Trenches on the San Andreas Fault at
Arano Flat near Watsonville, California: USGS Open-File Report 2003-450.
Co-authoring a paper with Tom Fumal of the USGS in Menlo Park, California (in progress) on
slip rate and recurrence of large earthquakes on the San Andreas fault in the southern Santa Cruz
Mountains, California.