Teatown Launches Collaborative Program with Pace University

^{Amy Karpati, Ph.D., Director of Science and Programs at Teatown with Pace Students this past week.}

Following a successful pilot program, Teatown and Pace University have officially launched a collaborative program which includes a college field biology course that brings Pace University students into the heart of Teatown’s 1,000-acre nature preserve.

^{Pictured above from left, Kevin Carter, Executive Director, Teatown; Dr.  Amy Karpati, Director of Science and Programs, Teatown; Dr. Melanie Dupuis, Chair of Environmental Science and Studies, Pace University; and Dr. Rich Schlesinger, Associate Dean and Director of DCISE, Pace University.}

Amy Karpati, Ph.D., Director of Science and Programs, and Hillary Siener, Manager of Science and Stewardship Programs at Teatown, are instructing a course titled “Natural History of the Hudson Valley” which currently has six of Pace’s Environmental Studies students enrolled. The class is primarily held outdoors, and focuses on the local ecology of the region including field identification of wildflowers, trees, shrubs, birds, and habitats. The class culminates with a habitat identification practical in which the students use aerial photographs to identify habitats and verify their results with field data.

On Sunday, April 23, Pace held a reception at Pace’s new Environmental Center Complex to celebrate the partnership.

“The average college student cannot tell the difference between a maple tree and an oak tree,” said Dr. Melanie Dupuis, Chair of Environmental Studies and Sciences at Pace and co-creator of the field course. “I wanted to make sure that students who learn about the environment in books also learn about it in nature. That’s why we partnered with Teatown. Field course students learn much more than identifying trees. They learn about ecology from the ground up, from vernal pools to invasives to identifying sensitive habitats.”