“The Council this team will assist was created by my executive order and preventing the listing of the Greater Sage-grouse is an on-going effort of the utmost importance. I am confident that the collaborative nature of this team – bringing scientists and range managers together under one roof – will help address this critical issue and make this effort stronger.”
– Governor Brian Sandoval
Kathleen Steele
Program Manager
Kathleen Steele began with the State as a member of the Sagebrush Ecosystem Technical Team in 2017, helping the Program grow and develop as she worked with landowners and industry proponents to achieve mitigation conservation for Greater Sage Grouse in Nevada. Prior to that, she worked for the Great Basin Institute in Nevada, partnering with the Bureau of Land Management for five years as an Assessment, Inventory and Monitoring Technician, and eventually a Lead for Land Health Monitoring in Northern Nevada. In this position, she monitored public lands to gather information regarding ecological sites, use and grazing, sage grouse habitat quality, endangered native plant presence, and invasive plant movement. Steele has a B.S. in Wildlife Conservation and Management and a minor in Photography from Humboldt State University in Arcata, California.
Cheyenne Acevedo
Technical Team - Wildlife
Cheyenne Acevedo is a Wildlife Staff Specialist representing
the Nevada Department of Wildlife. She has a background in ecology and utilizes
statistics and Bayesian Hierarchical modeling to understand species population
dynamics to improve wildlife management and conservation. She holds a Bachelor
of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Biology with a minor in
Statistics, as well as a Master of Science in Natural Resources and
Environmental Science from the University of Nevada, Reno. During her graduate
research, she focused on understanding the reasons behind the Greater Sage
Grouse population decline in Nevada. Her work involved developing a novel
dynamic spatio-temporal statistical model within a Bayesian hierarchical
framework to identify the main drivers contributing to the decline. Cheyenne
has spent several years collecting data in remote and rugged areas across
Nevada. Before joining the SETT, she worked as a NDOW Wildlife Diversity
Biologist responsible for preserving, managing, and studying non-game wildlife
species in Northwest Nevada. She used habitat-based conservation planning,
sound science, and innovative, collaborative partnerships to protect and manage
healthy populations of hundreds of Nevada’s wildlife species, including those
that are at-risk and sensitive.
Casey Adkins
Technical Team - Forestry/Wildland Fire
Casey Adkins is a Conservation Staff Specialist representing the Division of Forestry. She holds a Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Biology and is currently completing her PhD in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology at the University of Nevada, Reno. Her previous work has enabled her to study various systems, including small mammals in forest, prairie, and riparian ecosystems. Her research focuses on investigating interactions between species and their environments across scales, from genomic to landscape perspectives. Her work has involved developing species distribution models and demographic models to understand how weather and vegetation patterns affect individual and population success. Casey has spent years collecting field and bench data to characterize hybridization rates in response to resource use and weather conditions, exploring how such changes can lead to range expansion and contraction. As the Division of Forestry's SETT representative, her goal is to facilitate comprehensive and technical resource management actions with cooperating agencies and organizations to generate a net conservation benefit in Nevada.
Sarah Hale
Technical Team - State Lands
Sarah Hale represents the Nevada Division of State Lands as an Environmental Scientist on the SETT. She holds a PhD in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from the University of Arizona, a Master of Science in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from Mississippi State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Purdue University. She has had the opportunity to research and work with a variety of wildlife species, ranging from fire ants to prairie dogs to big-game species. She has also worked in a variety of professional roles, so understands different perspectives and enjoys an open, collaborative approach to ecosystem conservation. Before joining the SETT, she worked as an area game biologist for the Nevada Department of Wildlife, where she became intimately familiar with Nevada’s sagebrush ecosystem, the species that rely upon it, and the challenges they face.
Skyler Monaghan
Technical Team - Agriculture
Skyler Monaghan represents the Nevada Department of Agriculture as an Environmental Scientist on the SETT. He holds a Bachelors in Biological Sciences from Arizona State University. Skyler believes that protecting the natural environment not only has meaningful impact to wildlife but can be a valuable tool to support sustainable rangeland management practices throughout the state. Prior to working with the SETT, he was a program and outreach coordinator at the Tahoe Fund, specializing in Program management, as well as collaboration with state, local, and federal agencies. In his time at the Carson Valley Conservation District, he managed day-to-day operations of the noxious weeds program, along with implementation of conservation projects that focused on riparian area restoration on rivers in the Carson Valley.