Rate My Professor Kristie Franz

Kristie Franz serves as Department Chair, Professor, and Smith Family Foundation Chair in Geology in the Department of Earth, Atmosphere, and Climate at Iowa State University. She earned her B.S. in Geology from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 1995, M.S. in Hydrology and Water Resources from the University of Arizona in 2001, and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Irvine in 2006. In her role within Geoscience, Franz teaches courses in surface water hydrology, water resources, and hydrologic modeling. Her research program focuses on advancing streamflow prediction methods for more accurate hydrologic forecasts, with nearly two decades of investigation into snow and rainfall-runoff modeling and forecasting, hydrologic applications of remote sensing data, and the impacts of climate and land use on the hydrologic cycle. She also develops socio-hydrologic models to explore land and water management under future climate conditions and employs agent-based modeling to foster stakeholder collaboration for watershed improvement.

Franz's projects include the Watershed Community Model for social capital building across watersheds, ensemble streamflow forecasting using HRRR ensembles funded by NOAA CSTAR, modeling tile drainage in the National Water Model with NCAR and NOAA collaborators, remote sensing applications for hydrologic prediction such as snow water equivalent and potential evapotranspiration, and community-based strategies for river flooding and erosion in Alaska Native communities. Key publications encompass 'Snow Model Verification Using Ensemble Prediction and Operational Benchmarks' (2008, Journal of Hydrometeorology) and works on distributed hydrologic modeling using satellite-derived data. She has received the President’s Award from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Alumni Association in 2019 for outstanding professional achievements and service, and the Iowa State University Award for Departmental Leadership in 2024. As department chair, Franz has led the introduction of a new undergraduate major in climate science, enhancing interdisciplinary education and research impact in Geoscience.