Interdisciplinary / Multidisciplinary (99). "Expanding Evolutionary Studies in American Higher Education" is a collaborative project between SUNY at Binghamton and SUNY College at New Paltz. It involves further implementation, dissemination, and evaluation of a model for incorporating an evolutionary perspective throughout the undergraduate curriculum. The model is being developed at SUNY at Binghamton, and will be expanded to SUNY New Paltz and at least 9 other institutions during the course of the project. Elements of the curriculum include an introductory interdisciplinary course entitled "Evolution for Everyone," an interdisciplinary certificate-granting program in evolutionary studies that can be completed in conjunction with any major, an interdisciplinary seminar program that brings in outside speakers who provide an evolutionary perspective to a wide array of topics, and a program for involving undergraduates in community-based research projects. The model for dissemination includes a small-grants program for participating institutions, campus visits by members of the project team, and efforts at community building for the consortium members, including the development of an on-line journal devoted to undergraduate education in evolutionary studies. Project evaluation will include extensive evaluation of how individual campus initiatives influence student learning and student attitudes, as well as an evaluation of the dissemination model.
The intellectual merit of the project lies in its innovative approach to a difficult and important issue in science education (the teaching of evolution) by embedding an evolutionary perspective throughout the undergraduate curriculum, and by developing an interdisciplinary program that allows students from all disciplines to gain a certificate in evolutionary studies.
The broader impacts of the proposal include the dissemination of a successful model for an interdisciplinary program in evolutionary studies to a variety of other institutions, including community colleges. These programs are having a broad scope reaching well beyond the life sciences to include the physical sciences, social sciences, humanities and the arts, and are impacting a diverse array of students. The project is also helping to break down disciplinary walls by encouraging participation from faculty from a broad spectrum of academic disciplines.
