University Activities

One of the core components of the Center’s mission is to educate the future leaders of tomorrow about the regional and global environmental issues and concerns that will confront the citizens of Michigan in the 21st century. Thus, we emphasize hands-on experiential learning regarding ecological and geological processes and patterns whenever possible, whether it is via coursework, field labs, undergraduate and graduate research, or student-led associations.

Academic Course Work

Many undergraduate and graduate courses at UM-Dearborn are taught at the Center and/or utilizing the Environmental Study Area. They include:

  • BIOL 130 - Introduction to Organismal and Environmental Biology
  • BIOL/ESCI 304 - Ecology
  • BIOL 320 - Field Biology
  • BIOL 324 - Invertebrate Zoology
  • BIOL 333 - Plant Biology
  • BIOL/ESCI 337 - Plant Ecology
  • BIOL 353 – Ornithology
  • BIOL 390 - Animal Behavior and Evolution
  • BIOL 424 - Biology of Spiders
  • BIOL 508 – Invasive Species Ecology
  • COMP 105/106 - Introduction to Composition
  • COMP 270 - Super Composition
  • ENST 484 - Environmental Education
  • ENST 486 - Environmental Interpretation
  • ESCI 301 - Environmental Science
  • ESCI 525 - Soil in the Environment
  • GEOL 118 - Physical Geology
  • LIBS 585 - Watershed Analysis
  • NSCI 120 - Matter, Energy and Life
  • NSCI 231 - Learning by Inquiry: Physical Science
  • NSCI 232 - Learning by Inquiry: Earth/Planetary Science

Henry Ford Community College also teaches classes in the Environmental Study Area.

The diverse habitats of the Environmental Study Area provide a tremendous resource for on-site outdoor lab activities, such as plant, insect, and bird identification and classification, soil and water sampling and analysis of bacteria, nutrients, and heavy metals, geospatial analysis of landforms and waterways, and analysis of successional dynamics of aquatic and terrestrial habitats.