“Dr. Smith and [GTA] Chelsea Gray have been incredible throughout this whole thing [pandemic],” O’Keefe said. “They’re involved, supportive and proactive, and they connect to their class.”
—Eran O’Keef, Human Dimensions and Biomes Student
Educational Lab Videos
My 300 level undergraduate lab usually consists of unique field trips. However, due to COVID these could not happen. So I teamed up with GMU-TV to create engaging, educational videos.
Prince William County Landfill
You can view the video at this link: https://vimeo.com/472184115 using the password “Landfill”
GMU Honey Bees
You can view the 5 part video at this link: https://vimeo.com/showcase/7735519
George Mason Facilities
You can view the video at this link: https://vimeo.com/479630382 using the password “Smith”
Preparing students for jobs
Because streams are a common feature in many ecosystems, stream bioassessments like this are done all over the US, by both professional and citizen scientists. PEREC Faculty Dr. Cindy Smith and Dr. Chris Jones wanted to ensure that students in their Human Dimensions and Biomes class got real world experience testing local Fairfax County waters. In October, students visited both Accotink Creek and Cub Run, where they gathered benthic macro-invertebrates via kick net. Giving students experience with this type of data collections prepares students for a variety of jobs, whether it be for the government or volunteering in their local community [read more]
How has the pandemic changed things…?
Even though there is a pandemic, students are still getting real world experience. Students were supplied lab kits with the supplies needed to conduct their own research on a local stream.