The American Association of Colleges and Universities has selected Hamilton Geology Professor Barbara Tewksbury's introductory geology course as one of four courses to be taught nationally in 2002 as a model course that links the teaching of science to human issues.
The course, The Geology and Development of Modern Africa (Geology/Africana Studies 103), aims to help students uncover the underlying influences of geology on human events in Africa. The course addresses issues such as the timing and location of ancient Egyptian civilization, water supply and the future of Africa, development of the East African Rift and hominid evolution, South African gold deposits and apartheid, and conflict diamonds in Africa.
The American Association of Colleges and Universities' SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities) Program is a national initiative to promote and sustain reform of college and university science, math, engineering, and technology education by promoting development of courses that ask students to engage in rigorous science that is also connected to civic issues.
