Ryan earned her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology/Sociology from Centre College in Danville, Kentucky and is active in American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing at the National and Regional level as well as Urban Regional Information System Association (URISA) International. While she was in Kentucky, she was a founding member of the Cumberland Chapter (for the states of Kentucky and Tennessee) of URISA; from 2013 to 2016 she served as a member of the Board of Directors for that organization. She is a past Vanguard Cabinet Member (selected members of URISA International under the age of 35 who sit on at least one council and make a significant contribution to the annual conference, GISPro) of URISA International. She is a current Eastern Great Lakes board member.
"Ryan has been a great champion for GIS at the local, state, regional and national level. As one of the early members of URISA's Vanguard Cabinet of Young GIS Professionals, she was instrumental in paving the way for future cohorts to make an impact. She challenges the status quo and regularly demonstrates intelligence, poise, and leadership. It's been a pleasure to watch her advance in her career and bring others along with her."
Wendy Nelson, Executive Director of URISA
"URISA is pleased to announce that Ryan Elizabeth Bowe, GISP has been named URISA's Young Professional of the Year in recognition of her outstanding efforts as part of URISA's Vanguard Cabinet. Since 2005, Ryan has worked as a GIS Technician at Photo Science, Inc. – A Quantum Spatial Company, in Lexington, Kentucky. She is a Certified GIS Professional and has been an active and contributing member of numerous URISA committees and programs, most notably leading a URISA Lab on “Metadata”.
"The Vanguard Cabinet (VC) is a URISA initiative which debuted in 2011 to engage young GIS practitioners (35 and under), increase their numbers in the organization, and better understand the concerns facing these future leaders of the GIS community. The Cabinet’s mission is to collaborate with URISA’s Board of Directors and Committees in creating and promoting programs and policies of benefit to young professionals. Comprised entirely of passionate young members selected from different geospatial disciplines, the Cabinet aims to position URISA as the center of opportunities for creative young professionals who are committed to improving URISA and the geospatial profession via innovation, collaboration, networking, and professional development."
"Presented to members or staff who have made special contributions to URISA. This award was created (in 2004) to honor URISA’s former Chief Financial Officer, Barbara Hirsch. Barb made her mark at URISA by being an exceptional professional who would always step forward when a point needed to be made, but never stepped to the front for recognition. It is in the spirit of this dedication that the Board of Directors has created an award for special service to URISA. This award is given to individuals or committees who have shown a similar consummate level of service to URISA through an ongoing commitment to our success as an organization."
"First Awarded in 1992, Presidential Citations are presented by the ASPRS President to members of ASPRS and other societies, family members, and friends in recognition of special, personal, and meritorious contributions to the operation or advancement of the Society and its interests during the presidential year."
"I met Ryan through the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS), where she has been extremely active at both regional and national level. In particular, she led ASPRS’s group of early-career professionals and played a major role in a presidential task force established to streamline the governance of the Society. Her reliability, hard work and ability to make constructive suggestions resulted in enhancements to various aspects of ASPRS activities and her efforts were acknowledged by a presidential citation. Her energy and time-management enabled her to accomplish this while establishing her career in two of the country’s leading geospatial services companies."
Stewart Walker, MA, MScE PhD, MBA, FBCartS, FRGS, FRICS, FRSPSoc, Certified Photogrammetrist, #1170 ASPRS and Past President of ASPRS
"Ryan models change agency, convincing the most reluctant to listen to promising ideas and taking leadership to help implement better approaches. APSRS, during my tenure with its national Board over the past decade, continues to progress because mid-career professionals like Ryan are committed to our professional society’s values and never hesitate to accept challenges and opportunities to improve our impact within our community."
Roberta Lenczowski, secretary of AmericaView; current ASPRS Board member, a past ASPRS President, and ASPRS Fellow