Jessica Campbell Shares Her Work-Life Balance Story

Jessica in the field

Jessica Campbell (MGIS 2011) is a very busy person. She currently serves as the Lead Cartographer for the Interior Region 3 Division of Realty, National Wildlife Refuge System at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. With a team of two Cartographers and two Biological Science Technicians, she helps to maintain the Region’s cadastral data and map public lands for internal and external customers. She has a strong passion for natural resource management and works to improve the quality of their GIS data to ensure the timely delivery of relevant data and maps to the public.

In addition to her full-time job, Jessica has also been a member of the Army National Guard for over 16 years. For the last nine years, she has served as a Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) Officer in charge of a team comprised of Army Geospatial Engineers and Imagery Analysts. Together, they analyze imagery and geospatial information that visually depicts physical features and geographically referenced activities on the Earth. She recently returned from a nearly year-long tour overseas where she oversaw the production of time-sensitive GEOINT and distributed it to military units across the Middle East. She also participated in several bi-lateral coalition partner training exercises where she provided custom-made, bilingual cartographic products.

Jessica credits the MGIS program with playing a critical role in her career development. The courses she took provided a diverse foundation for a career as a GIS professional. She also notes that the long hours and late nights in the GIS lab provided excellent networking opportunities with classmates creating personal and professional relationships that are still strong today. So strong in fact, that she enjoys working with four other MGIS graduates at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service! Erik Olson (MGIS 2010), Teran Robshaw (MGIS 2016), Ethan Mooar (MGIS 2017), and Frank Wagner (MGIS 2018) are all using knowledge they gained as MGIS students to do great work that benefits wildlife conservation efforts.

When she’s not mapping lands near and far, Jessica likes to spend time with her wife Emily, friends, and their families on the east coast. They take their dog Gelato for daily walks, run and bike local trails year-round, and travel to new places when they can. It is very challenging to manage a full-time job, a part-time job, and a busy home life, but it can be done.

Jessica has also been a strong supporter of the MGIS program and its students. She has donated generously each year to the MGIS annual fundraising campaign, has mentored students and served as a guest speaker in GIS classes, and has participated in the GISSO Career and Networking Fair as an exhibitor. Thank you, Jessica, for being an exceptional role model and GIS professional!

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