Dr Thomas was born in upstate New York and still has a home in the 1000 Islands. He holds degrees from the University of New Hampshire, University of Wyoming, and Idaho State University and completed postdoctoral fellowships at Virginia Tech and Cornell University before coming to UNL in 2006. In 2016, Dr Thomas served as the Vice President for the Society for Freshwater Science. He currently serves as the chair of the Water Science Curriculum Committee and leader of the Environmental Science Mission Area.