Dr. Tracy Hodge

Dr. Tracy Hodge graduated from Rice University with a BA in Physics in 1989 and earned a PhD in Physics with a concentration in infrared astrophysics from the University of Wyoming in 1996. She was a faculty member at Salem State College in Massachusetts for seven years before returning to her home state of Kentucky to join the faculty of Berea College in 2006. Dr. Hodge’s research interests include infrared studies of the dust environments around stars, ground-based observations of transient objects, and developing inclusive teaching practices in the STEM disciplines. Her current research focuses on observations of variable stars and exoplanet transits using the 20″ telescope at Berea College’s Windswept Observatory, and researching Native American Sky Stories for public outreach programs in collaboration with the Berea College Forestry Outreach Center.

Dr. Hodge regularly teaches History of Cosmology (PHY 110), Introduction to Astronomy (PHY 111), Introductory Physics with Calculus (PHY 221/222) and Modern Physics (PHY 320). She also shares teaching responsibility for upper level courses such as Electromagnetic Theory (PHY 460), Classical Mechanics (PHY 481), and Quantum Mechanics (PHY 482) with her physics colleagues. Her classes emphasize conceptual understanding, quantitative reasoning, and student-centered learning.

In addition to teaching and research, Dr. Hodge is the Director of the Berea College Planetarium and is co-coordinator of the Inclusive STEM Teaching Project on campus. She has served as Chair of Division I (2019-2023), Department Chair in Physics (2013-2019), and on several campus-wide committees. She is an active member of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and has served as an At-Large Representative on the Board of the Kentucky Academy of Science.