Education Outreach

The FLI creates, disseminates and coordinates a variety of educational resources and opportunities. The Institute builds on and sustains existing programs at the Colleges as well as other programs in the Finger Lakes region. A primary goal is to develop curricular materials and resources that support and extend existing programs, such as Science on Seneca. The educational pursuits include:

• Developing innovative curricular material, resources and educational opportunities for K-12 students and teachers
• Offering professional development programs for teachers and other educators
• Hosting school groups and participating students involved with Science on Seneca (SOS) and other outreach programs
• Providing educational opportunities for Hobart and William Smith students
• Contributing curriculum to K-12 schools through participation in school advisory boards and committees
  
  

Current FLI Education Outreach Programs

Science on Seneca | My Place in the Finger Lakes
Teacher Training | GIT Ahead | Summer Science in Action Camp
Environmental Science Summer Youth Institute

Science on Seneca (SOS):

Science on Seneca enables local science teachers to use Seneca Lake as an outdoor classroom. To participate, science teachers must take part in one of two yearly training sessions (fall and spring). During the training, teachers take a cruise on Seneca Lake aboard The William Scandling, Hobart and William Smith Colleges' 65 ft. research vessel. During the training, teachers experience the full range of scientific tests and equipment available to them aboard The William Scandling, including plankton tows, sediment samples and water chemistry, to name a few.

Teachers that have taken the training on board The William Scandling can make a return visit with their students to conduct research on Seneca Lake for a nominal fee of $15.00 (per class). Teachers can also access on-line lessons as a follow-up to their activities with students. 

My Place in the Finger Lakes:

The My Place in the Finger Lakes project will utilize the Finger Lakes environment (built, natural, urban, suburban and rural) as part of the learning experience and incorporate inquiry and firsthand experiences into curriculum modules following the New York State Math Science and Technology Standards.

To learn more about this project and teacher training opportunities contact Sheila Myers, Education Outreach Coordinator.

Teacher Training/Professional Development

Finger Lakes Ecology Workshop July 8-10th, 2008.
Hosted by the Finger Lakes Institute and Montezuma Audubon, this 2 - 1/2 day workshop is for environmental educators that want to incorporate information and facts about the Finger Lakes into their lessons. Participants will be engaged in several hands-on activities taken from a variety of curriculum including My Place in the Finger Lakes, Audubon Bird in your Backyard citizen science, and Project Wet. There are a number of field trips including once on Seneca Lake, a canoe trip in the Montezuma Wetlands Complex, and a visit to a local vineyard. See attached brochure for more information. Space is limited so sign up early.

Photo courtesy of Don Spier.

GIT Ahead:

Focusing on geospatial information technologies (GIT), GIT Ahead provides teacher professional development, educational software development, and career awareness and preparation experiences for high school students in schools throughout the Finger Lakes region. The project aims to help high school students see geospatial technologies as pathways to relevant, exciting, and high-demand careers, and to create higher education pathways for students who might not otherwise pursue such goals. In the two-week GIT Ahead summer institute, high school and middle school teachers learn how to use geographic information systems to address relevant local environmental issues, and develop inquiry-based, watershed-focused projects to conduct in their science classes. Participating students have opportunities to experience GIT-enhanced units in their high school classes, enter the GIS Associate’s Degree program at Cayuga Community College, and participate in summer internships at the Finger Lakes Institute, the Institute for the Application of Geospatial Technology, and regional businesses in collaboration with the New York State Geographical Information Systems Association. For more information about GIT Ahead, visit their Web site or contact Project Manager Karen Edelstein at (315) 781-4385 or Edelstein@hws.edu.

Summer Science in Action Camp:

Summer Science in Action, a pair of week-long summer science day camps, offer middle school youths an opportunity to get out and explore nature through hands-on activities. Hosted on the Hobart and William Smith Colleges campus, the two campus focus on water resources in the Finger Lakes region and the science of botany. The program is sponsored in part by Finger Lakes Wired, a science and technology initiative that connects youth to real life applications in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. For more information about the 2007 camps, visit Water Worlds and What's A Botonist To Do?

Environmental Studies Summer Youth Institute (ESSYI):

Located in the heart of New York's Finger Lakes region, on beautiful Seneca Lake, the Environmental Studies Summer Youth Institute at Hobart and William Smith Colleges provides exceptional opportunities to explore the scientific, social, and humanistic perspectives of environmental issues.

The Institute offers a two-week, college-level interdisciplinary program for talented high-school students entering their junior and senior years. The program is designed as an introduction to a variety of environmental issues and perspectives on nature and our environment.

Working in the field, in laboratories, in classrooms, and on a four-day camping trip, students explore a range of topics in environmental policy, economics, and ethics, and come to see the natural world through the eyes of artists, historians, philosophers, and scientists.

For more information about FLI Educational Outreach Programs, call (315) 781-4380 or email smyers@hws.edu.