{{Short description|American geology professor}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox academic | name = Robert "Bob" Mitchell | workplaces = [[Western Washington University]] | education = {{ubl|[[University of Wisconsin–River Falls]] (BS)| [[Michigan Technological University]] (MS, PhD)| [[University of Minnesota Duluth]] (MS)}} | website = {{url|https://kula.geol.wwu.edu/rjmitch/}} | discipline = {{hlist|[[Geologist]]|[[hydrogeologist]]}} | titles = Digges Distinguished Professor | doctoral_advisor = Alex S. Mayer | thesis_title = Nonideal Flow and Solute Transport in Unsaturated Porous Media: A Modeling Study | thesis_year = 1996 }}

'''Robert John Mitchell''' is an American [[geologist]] and Digges Distinguished Professor of Engineering Geology at [[Western Washington University]]. Mitchell, as a professor in the Geology Department, conducts research and teaches courses on the topics of [[engineering geology]] and [[hydrogeology]], as well as [[numerical modeling]] of [[hydrology]] and [[water resources]]. He was a Washington-licensed hydrogeologist under a specialty geologist license from 2002 until 2018.<ref name="CV">{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Robert J. |title=CV |url=https://www.geol.wwu.edu/rjmitch/rjm.html |access-date=2025-01-19 |publisher=[[Western Washington University]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Geologist License Number: 2229 |url=https://professions.dol.wa.gov/s/license-lookup |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=License Lookup |publisher=[[Washington State Department of Licensing]] |at=}}</ref>

==Personal life and education== Mitchell's hometown is [[Hudson, Wisconsin]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert Mitchell |url=https://aasac.wwu.edu/rjmitch |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=Academic Advising & Student Achievement Center |publisher=[[Western Washington University]]}}</ref> He received a [[Bachelor of Science|B.S.]] degree in geology (with a minor in math) from the [[University of Wisconsin–River Falls]] in 1983, and also holds a 1986 [[Master of Science|M.S.]] in geophysics from [[Michigan Technological University]] and a 1990 M.S. in physics from [[University of Minnesota Duluth]]. He received his [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] in environmental engineering from Michigan Technological University in 1996, with a [[thesis]] entitled ''Nonideal Flow and Solute Transport in Unsaturated Porous Media: A Modeling Study'', advised by [[Alex S. Mayer]]. Mitchell joined the faculty of [[Western Washington University]] that same year.<ref name="CV" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Past Awardees |url=https://president.wwu.edu/past-awardees |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=President's Office |publisher=[[Western Washington University]]}}</ref>

== Career == Mitchell holds the Robert H. and Kathleen Digges Distinguished Professorship in the Geology Department at [[Western Washington University]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Robert J. |title=Robert H. and Kathleen Digges Distinguished Professorship |url=https://kula.geol.wwu.edu/rjmitch/digges.html |access-date=2025-01-20 |publisher=[[Western Washington University]]}}</ref> Mitchell's research studies [[climate change resilience]] and the climate's effects on water resources and hillslope processes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert Mitchell |url=https://geology.wwu.edu/people/rjmitch |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=Geology Department |publisher=[[Western Washington University]]}}</ref>

Mitchell served on the Washington Geologist Licensing Board in 2014,<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 2014 |title=News from the Washington State Geologist Licensing Board |url=https://dev.dol.wa.gov/business/geologist/docs/geonews1014.pdf |access-date=2023-04-26 |website=Geologist Licensing Board |publisher=[[Washington State Department of Licensing]]}}</ref> and also served as the chair of the Environmental & Engineering Geology Division of the [[Geological Society of America]] from 2020 to 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Management Board |website=Environmental & Engineering Geology Division |url=https://community.geosociety.org/eegdivision/aboutus/board |access-date=2023-04-26 |publisher=[[Geological Society of America]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert "Bob" Mitchell |url=http://www.skagitclimatescience.org/about-us/full-members/bobmitchell/ |access-date=2023-04-26 |website=Full Members |publisher=[[Skagit Climate Science Consortium]]}}</ref> He is a member of the Geological Society of America<ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert Mitchell |url=https://community.geosociety.org/network/members/profile?UserKey=d87b13cf-0b0d-4609-9c89-a278c920dacf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601064521/https://community.geosociety.org/network/members/profile?UserKey=d87b13cf-0b0d-4609-9c89-a278c920dacf |archive-date=June 1, 2023 |access-date=2025-01-19 |website=Online Member Community |publisher=[[Geological Society of America]]}}</ref> and a contributor to the Science Education Resource Center at [[Carleton College]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert Mitchell |url=https://serc.carleton.edu/person/19718.html |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=Science Education Resource Center |publisher=[[Carleton College]]}}</ref> and the State of Washington Water Research Center at [[Washington State University]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Skagit River Basin Groundwater Study |url=https://wrc.wsu.edu/project/skagit-river-basin-groundwater-study/ |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=State of Washington Water Research Center |publisher=[[Washington State University]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Awards == Mitchell was a 2019 inductee into the [[University of Minnesota Duluth]]'s Swenson College Academy of Science & Engineering.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Academy Members |url=https://scse.d.umn.edu/about/academy-science-engineering/academy-members |access-date=2023-04-26 |website=Swenson College of Science and Engineering |publisher=[[University of Minnesota Duluth]]}}</ref> In 2022, he won an EEGD Meritorious Service Award from the [[Geological Society of America]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=EEGD Meritorious Service Award |url=https://community.geosociety.org/eegdivision/awards/new-item4 |access-date=2023-04-25 |website=Environmental & Engineering Geology Division |publisher=[[Geological Society of America]]}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == * [https://geology.wwu.edu/people/rjmitch Robert Mitchell] – Geology Department, Western Washington University

{{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Robert}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]] [[Category:People from Hudson, Wisconsin]] [[Category:21st-century American geologists]] [[Category:21st-century American engineers]] [[Category:Hydrogeologists]] [[Category:University of Wisconsin–River Falls alumni]] [[Category:Michigan Technological University alumni]] [[Category:University of Minnesota Duluth alumni]] [[Category:Western Washington University faculty]]