J. Phil Gibson, Ph.D.
2022 Distinguished Alumni
B.S. Botany '88
- Phil Gibson received his bachelor’s degree in botany from Oklahoma State University in 1988 and went on to earn a master’s from the University of Georgia and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado.
His botanical research has investigated the evolutionary ecology of plant reproductive systems and has taken him to research sites at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, cloud forests of Costa Rica, and the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains. His pedagogy research investigates development and use of active learning and inquiry-based approaches in STEM education.
Dr. Gibson was named one of the Faculty for the 21st Century by Project Kaleidoscope. He received the Bessey Award and the Postlethwait Award from the Botanical Society of America for his work in botany education, and The Thomas Huxley Award from the Society for the Study of Evolution for his contributions to evolution education.
He is a Paul Risser Innovative Teaching Fellow and recipient of the Longmire Award for Teaching at the University of Oklahoma. Gibson is also a Higher Education Ambassador for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s BioInteractive Program.
Dr. Gibson produces and hosts a science education podcast called Biology Through Audio (BioTA). He is currently a professor and the chair of the Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology at OU. He is also a member of the Cherokee Nation.