th 6 Annual Meeting Teaching and Learning the Hudson Valley: Building Capacity for Place-Based Education November 13-14, 2009 Vassar College 124 Raymond Avenue Poughkeepsie, NY Co-SSponsors About the Environmental Consortium The Environmental Consortium of Hudson Valley Colleges & Universities was established in 2004 to advance our understanding of the cultural, social, political, economic and natural factors affecting the Hudson River Watershed. By promoting collaboration among its members, the Consortium works to provide ecosystem-based curricular and co-curricular programming aimed at improving the health of the regional ecosystem. The mission of the Environmental Consortium of Hudson Valley Colleges & Universities is to harness higher education’s intellectual and physical resources to advance regional, ecosystem- based environmental research, teaching, and learning through interdisciplinary, collaborative programs and information sharing. Spearheaded and hosted by Pace University, the Consortium’s headquarters is situated within the Pace Academy for Applied Environmental Studies in White Plains, New York. Among Pace Academy’s stated goals is to externally apply the university’s strengths to local and global environmental problems. As a testament to its commitment to interdisciplinary pedagogy, scholarship and service, the Academy provides essential administrative support that grounds the Consortium’s programs. www.environmentalconsortium.org Conference Planning Committee Lucy Lewis Johnson, Vassar College (Chair) Stuart Belli, Vassar College Paul Benzing, College of Saint Rose Erica Crespi, Vassar College Zofia Gagnon, Marist College Cornelia Harris, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies Donna Kowal, Pace University Michelle Land, Pace University Allison Michalski, Pace University Larry O'Connell, Pace University Lisa Paravisini, Vassar College Dan Peck, Vassar College Meg Ronsheim, Vassar College Emily Vail, Vassar College Zywia Wojnar, Pace Law School CONTENTS Agenda ............................................................................................................................................................... 1 Friday, November 13th ................................................................................................................................... 1 Saturday, November 14th .............................................................................................................................. 5 Keynote Speaker Biographies .......................................................................................................................... 6 Peter G. Brown ............................................................................................................................................. 6 Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey .............................................................................................................. 6 John Cronin .................................................................................................................................................. 7 Roundtable Sessions ........................................................................................................................................ 9 Roundtable Session Ia. Humanities Approaches to the Environment ....................................................... 9 Roundtable Session Ib. Sustainability Across the Curriculum ................................................................. 10 Roundtable Session Ic. Infusing Environment into K-12 Curriculum ...................................................... 13 Roundtable Session IIa. Collaborative Working with the Community ..................................................... 16 Roundtable Session IIb. How do you teach the Hudson when you can’t get to it? .................................. 18 Roundtable Session IIc. Environmental Studies and Digital Media ........................................................ 20 Roundtable Session IIIa. Pre-College Education on the Environment .................................................... 22 Roundtable Session IIIb. Local Watersheds ............................................................................................. 24 Roundtable Session IIIc. Teaching In/On the River ................................................................................. 27 Workshops ...................................................................................................................................................... 30 When Learning Comes Naturally .............................................................................................................. 30 Lang on the Hudson - An Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching the Harbor and Estuary ................. 30 Regional Opportunities for Students: Summer and Beyond ..................................................................... 31 Teaching-Based Posters (Friday) .................................................................................................................. 32 Student/Faculty Research, Posters, Multi-Media Presentations (Saturday) .............................................. 35 Field Trips ...................................................................................................................................................... 40 AGENDA FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13TH 8:30am Check-in and Continental Breakfast (2nd Floor, College Center) 9:00am Welcome Lucy Lewis Johnson (The Villard Room) Professor, Department of Anthropology Vassar College Michelle D. Land Director Environmental Consortium of Hudson Valley Colleges & Universities 9:15am Keynote Economics Without Ecocide: Redefining Our Place in the Universe and on Earth Peter G. Brown Professor, Department of Geography McGill University President’s Catharine Bond Hill Greeting President Vassar College 10:15am Break 10:30am Concurrent Roundtable Session I a. Humanities Approaches to the Environment (Room 240, College Center) "A Local Habitation and a Name: Reflections on Teaching the Hudson" Paul Kane, Professor of English, Vassar College (Moderator) “Writing the Natural World” Susan Fox Rogers, Visiting Associate Professor of Writing, Bard College “Visualizing the Environment in Word and Image” Tom Lewis, Professor of English, Skidmore College b. Sustainability Across the Curriculum (Room 223, College Center) “A Green Marketing Course” Fredrica Rudell, Chair, Marketing and International Business, Iona College (Moderator) “Integrating Sustainability into Science and Finance Courses” John Cusack, Executive Director, NJ Higher Education Partnership on Sustainability “The Hudson Project” Lucy Johnson, Professor, Department of Anthropology, Vassar College “Making the Environmental Connection in Social Work Education” Meryl Nadel, Associate Professor and Director, Center for Social Research, Iona College “Addressing Environmental Themes Through Multiple Modes of Curricular Delivery” Chris Rounds, Chair, ESC Environmental Impact Committee, Empire State College (SUNY) 1 c. Infusing Environment into K-12 Curriculum (Room 204, College Center) “Team-teaching to Enhance Teacher Education: A collaboration between CNR's Environmental Studies and Education Programs” Faith Kostel-Hughes, Director of Environmental Studies Diane Quandt, Chair of Education, College of New Rochelle (Moderators) “K-12 Pathways for Environmental Science Literacy in the Hudson Valley” Alan Berkowitz, Head of Education, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies “Weaving an Interdisciplinary Curricula: ‘I See Freedom’ Based on the Freed Slave James F. Brown’s Detailed 1829-1868 Journal About His Life in the Hudson Valley” Susan Handler Konvit, Executive Director, The Arts Alliance of the Lower Hudson Valley "Place-Based Education in Beacon: A Hands-on, Park-based Program Supported by In-class Visits and Strong Partnerships" Susan Hereth, Education Coordinator, Scenic Hudson 12:00pm Networking Lunch (The Villard Room) 1:15pm Concurrent Roundtable Session II a. Collaborative Working with the Community (Room 223, College Center) “Augmenting Reality to Engage the Environment” Matthew Slaats, Vassar College (Moderator) “Watershed Education and Outreach in Dutchess County” Carolyn Nurre, Environmental Resource Educator, Cornell Cooperative Extension Dutchess County “Monitoring Glass Eels in the Tributaries” Beth Roessler, Communications Coordinator, Hudson River Estuary Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation “Food or Rent” Decora Lloyd Sandiford, Co-founder, Readnex Poetry Squad "Community Interactions Focusing on REU Sharing Science" Patricia Zolnik, Undergraduate Research Program Coordinator, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies b. How do you teach the Hudson when you can’t get to it? (Room 240, College Center) “Historical and other mapping approaches to the Hudson Valley” Mary Ann Cunningham, Associate Professor of Geography, Vassar College (Moderator) “Changing Hudson Project” Cornelia Harris, Education Program Leader, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies “Hudson River Environmental Conditions Observing System [HRECOS]” Alene Onion, HRECOS Coordinator, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 2 c. Environmental Studies and Digital Media (Room 204, College Center) “Making Data Come to Life: Environmental Science Meets Digital Media” Alessandra Leri, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Science Rebecca Mushtare, Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Marymount Manhattan College (Moderators) “Hudson River Valley Heritage” Tessa Killian,