I enjoy actively involving and educating developing scientists in wildlife ecology and biology. My teaching approach integrates hands on experiences in the field and laboratory with interactive lectures and readings from peer-reviewed literature. I currently instruct two courses on campus: 1) Wildlife Techniques (FWE 561) and 2) the ecology section of General Biology (BIO 152).
Wildlife Techniques is an advanced undergraduate course for wildlife majors that surveys of the techniques and methodologies that wildlife biologists use to conduct research, and make management decisions. The course is organized with a week-by-week approach, highlighting both traditional and “cutting-edge” techniques used to study free-ranging animal populations. An emphasis is placed on pairing hands-on activities in the field with data organization and summary in the laboratory. For me, it has been an honor helping to carry our department’s long tradition of instructing Wildlife Techniques, a course that was originally offered by Aldo Leopold in the 1940s. For more information on our course project at the UW Lakeshore Nature preserve, click here.
General Biology (Ecology Section) is a large (300+ students per section) introductory course for biology majors. I instruct the Ecology section of the course. Although the vast majority of students enrolled in General Biology are not interested in an “ecology track”, I’m always delighted to see undergraduates sorting through the various biology discipline awakened to how fascinating ecological systems are — I’m particularly enthused when some of those students end up pursuing an ecology-related major on campus.
Photos: Left: Aldo Leopold instructing a wildlife class, 1943 Right: Agricultural Hall Lecture Hall, Bryce Richter, UW-Madison © Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System