Susan Allen-Gil, associate professor of biology and coordinator of the environmental studies/sciences
program, redesigned the course Introduction to Environmental Science to incorporate more hands-on
learning opportunities for students. In September 2006, she took students in the class on the M/V
Haendel, a floating classroom for educational investigations of Cayuga Lake. Working in small groups,
students attempted to identify variables that they anticipated would control zebra mussel distribution
and learned to use a variety of scientific instruments to collect the information they needed.
Allen-Gil reported that students listed this activity as their favorite one of
the whole semester.
