He earned a Master of Forestry (2006) and Doctorate (2010) of Geography from West Virginia University. Most recently, Dr. Maxwell worked at The Pennsylvania State University as a postdoctoral scholar in the Vegetation Dynamics Laboratory housed in the Department of Geography. His research interests are focused on vegetation dynamics, disturbance history, and modeling with an emphasis on dendrochronology (tree-ring analysis). Dr. Maxwell has conducted research from Virginia to Maine, California, Nevada, and even, Mongolia.