Sarah Nilson, Ph.D.

Sarah Nilson
Associate Professor, Biology
[email protected]
Room 114, Laboratory Classroom Building

Sarah Nilson, Ph.D., is an associate professor of biology who teaches introductory and upper-level biology, ethnobotany, plant science, and studio art courses.

In the classroom, Dr. Nilson is known for her creative and inclusive approach that supports a diversity of learning styles and a broad array of teaching methods weaving science and art together to explore the natural world. In 2024, because of her teaching excellence, she earned the George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching, one of the highest teaching awards in the University.  

Her students don’t just memorize terms from a textbook — they grow plants, sequence genes, model proteins, visit beehives, and make art to better understand the patterns in and behaviors of life. She also oversees the campus high tunnel – a living laboratory on campus - which grows herbs, vegetables, fruit, and flowers for the campus community. Each semester she collaborates with a group of students doing field work and genetics lab work for research projects on ramps, ginseng, and dicentra. Students also have the opportunity to do independent research with Dr. Nilson.

Dr. Nilson’s classes prepare students for a variety of career options including: 

  • Forestry
  • Conservation biology
  • Biological research
  • Environmental science
  • Agriculture
  • Biomedical fields
  • Psychology

Dr. Nilson leads conservation and ethnobotanical research on Appalachian native plants including ramps, ginseng, goldenseal, and fern leaf bleeding heart. Her research products contribute to public and academic discourse on sustainable food systems, plant conservation, and agroforestry. 

Importance of ramps (Allium tricoccum) as a wild food in Northern Appalachia, U.S.A, Society and Natural Resources - 2025
Collaborators: Catherine Pugh, Student Author; Eric Burkhart, Primary Author; Joshua Lambert

New microsatellite markers distinguish two species of Ramps (Allium tricoccum complex) and show variation in clonality and genetic diversity between species and among populations, PLOS ONE - October, 2025
Collaborators: Matt Estep, Author; Eric Burkhart , Co-Author; Harvey Ballard, Co-Author; Ezra Pascal, Co-Author; Bina Sitepu; Haley Velemirovich, Co-Author; Malia Costa, Co-Author

Habitat modeling of ramps (Allium tricoccum) in Pennsylvania: guidance for forest farming, Wild - November, 2024
Collaborators: Ezra Stark, Author; Eric Burkhart, Corresponding Author; Cassie Stark, Co-Author; Xin Chen

Two ramp taxa, Allium tricoccum Ait. and A. burdickii (Hanes) A.G. Jones), differ in abiotic habitat characteristics and floristic associates in Pennsylvania, Natural Areas Journal - July, 2023
Collaborators: Cassie Stark, Student Author; Eric Burkhart, Primary Author

Ramp (Allium tricoccum Ait.) weight differs across the harvest season: implications for wild plant stewardship and forest farming, Agroforestry Systems - January, 2023
Collaborators: R Jordan, Student Author; Eric Burkhart, Co-Author; Joshua Lambert, Co-Author

Neither wild nor cultivated: wild American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) trade surveys provide insights into husbandry of an internationally traded non-timber forest product, Economic Botany - August, 2021
Collaborators: Eric Burkhart, Corresponding Author; Catherine Pugh, Student Author; Grady Zuiderveen, Student Author

Ph D, Plant Biology, Penn State University

BA, Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh

BS, Biology, University of Pittsburgh