Steve Goodwin's research interests include microbial synthesis and degradation of biopolymers, microbial ecology, anaerobic digestion and bioremediation, bioenergetics of microbial growth in extreme environments, microbiology and redox chemistry in groundwater, microbiology of solid waste disposal, compost microbiology and spore formation.

Dr. Goodwin most recently served as the Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at UMass Amherst for a decade.