Rate My Professor Casey terHorst

Casey terHorst, Professor in the Department of Biology at California State University, Northridge (CSUN), has been a faculty member since 2013, advancing through the ranks from Assistant Professor (2013-2018) to Associate Professor (2018-2023) and full Professor (2023-present). He completed his Ph.D. in Biological Science at Florida State University in 2010 under co-advisors Thomas Miller and Don Levitan, earned his M.S. in Biological Sciences from CSUN in 2004 with advisor Steve Dudgeon, and holds a B.A. in History from the University of Southern California (1998). From 2010 to 2013, he served as a Post-doctoral Research Associate at Michigan State University’s Kellogg Biological Station under advisor Jennifer Lau.

terHorst’s research focuses on eco-evolutionary dynamics, investigating how genetic variation and rapid contemporary evolution influence species interactions, community structure, and biodiversity maintenance. His work examines the limits of eco-evo feedbacks, genetic variation driving host-symbiont responses in coral reefs to temperature stress, and evolutionary processes in invasive species and pitcher plant inquiline communities. As principal investigator, he has received substantial National Science Foundation funding, including a $565,000 grant from the Division of Environmental Biology (2018-2023) for “RUI: Limits to the effects of contemporary evolution on communities,” an $873,062 grant from the Division of Ocean Sciences (2016-2022) for collaborative research on coral reef symbionts, and a $594,760 grant from the Division of Mathematical Sciences (2013-2017) on trait evolution and community stability. Key publications include “Quantifying non-additive selection caused by indirect ecological effects” (Ecology, 2015), “The relative importance of rapid evolution for plant-microbe interactions depends on ecological context” (Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 2014), “Evolution in response to direct and indirect effects in pitcher plant inquiline communities” (The American Naturalist, 2012), and “Evolution of prey in ecological time reduces the effect size of predators in experimental microcosms” (Ecology, 2010). terHorst contributes to scholarship as Editor for The American Naturalist (2021-present) and Oecologia (2018-present). At CSUN, he is Graduate Coordinator for the M.S. Biology program, past Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee (2017-2020), Faculty Senate Representative (2017-present), and founding member of the department’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, alongside various search and standing committees.