Rate My Professor Jay Quade

Jay Quade was a distinguished Professor in the Department of Geosciences at The University of Arizona, holding a joint appointment as Professor in the School of Anthropology. He joined the faculty in 1992 as Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 1998 and full Professor in 2003, and served as Director of the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill since 1992. Earlier in his career, Quade held geologist positions with Utah International, Phillips Petroleum, Noranda Exploration, and the Desert Research Institute from 1977 to 1990. His academic background includes a B.S. in Geology from the University of New Mexico (1978), an M.S. in Geology from the University of Arizona (1982) with a thesis on Late Quaternary stratigraphy in the Las Vegas Valley, and a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Utah (1990) focused on stable isotopes in soil carbonates as ecologic and paleoclimatic indicators. He completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at the Australian National University (1991) studying Sr and C isotopes in soils and teeth.

Quade's research specialized in geochemical aspects of soils as ecologic and paleoecologic indicators, weathering, radiocarbon dating, stable isotopic and trace element geochemistry of soils and waters, fossil springs, paleolakes, and geoarchaeology. His pioneering contributions advanced understanding of climate and landscape evolution over 60 million years, including C4 grassland expansion, Asian monsoon development, paleoaltimetry in Tibet and the Andes, pluvial lakes in the Atacama and southwestern U.S., and paleoenvironments linked to early hominids. With nearly 400 publications and over 30,000 citations, key works include 'Resetting southern Tibet: the serious challenge of obtaining primary records of paleoaltimetry' (2020, Global and Planetary Change), 'Megalakes in the Sahara? A Review' (2018, Quaternary Research), 'Calibrating the clumped isotope geothermometer in soils and paleosols' (2013, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta), and 'Expansion of C4 ecosystems as an indicator of global ecological change' (Cerling et al., 1993, Nature). Quade received the National Academy of Sciences election (2024), Arthur L. Day Medal (GSA, 2018), GSA Fellow (2015), AGU Fellow (2015), Geochemical Society Fellow (2017), and Farouk El-Baz Award (GSA, 2001). A dedicated mentor and teacher, he led field camps and graduate courses until his passing on October 17, 2025.