Heather Prestridge

Heather L. Prestridge, MSc. is Curator in the Texas A&M University Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology at the Biodiversity Research and Teaching Collections (BRTC). Her role is to care for and promote the use of the collections at the BRTC through specimen curation, data management and mobilization, and coordination of use of the facility. Prestridge is interested in discovering and making available “dark” collections at institutions that lack the ability to properly curate their collections. This interest has added important collections to the BRTC notably from the National Parks System, but also from international colleagues. She participates in field expeditions supporting the growth of the collections, specifically targeting sinks in specimens of particular species over space and time. To support the care and curation of the specimens at the BRTC, Prestridge oversees numerous student workers, volunteers, and interns that receive hands-on training in traditional and modern museum techniques. She coordinates with gallery curators across campus and the local area to produce educational exhibits as a means of enhancing the knowledge of the resources that the BRTC has to offer. Prestridge successfully collaborates with faculty curators in soliciting funds for a variety of projects that seek to support the growth of the collections, utilize specimens in novel ways, and even to engage with a diverse group of students to address conservation initiatives.