Students learn how to integrate the use of inferential statistics and qualitative data analysis to conduct rigorous examinations of the social, biological, and physical aspects of environmental issues. This knowledge will prepare students for their own research and for understanding and critiquing research articles and reports in fields of their choosing.

Faculty Biographies

Carri LeRoy, Ph.D., is a stream ecologist who is fascinated by interactions between forests and streams, and has studied riparian systems in Washington, Arizona, and Utah for the past 10 years. She is also Co-Director of the Sustainability in Prisons Project at Evergreen. Dr. LeRoy has published over 25 scientific research articles with students and collaborators in the fields of stream ecology, ecological genetics, riparian forest ecology and prairie plant community dynamics. As an MES faculty, she gets to teach about the ecology of the Pacific Northwest as well as the applications and theory of statistics and quantitative methods. Her interests in non-formal education are based in her experience with environmental and place-based education, her work with incarcerated students and her desire to facilitate environmental stewardship in broad audiences. Other topics she is interested in include: invertebrate community ecology, trophic dynamics in lake ecosystems, long-term monitoring of ecosystem function, and issues of aesthetics in science.