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Environmental Studies
U.S. News and World Report recently named Environmental Studies as one of the top nine "college majors with a future," and Environmental Studies majors at Randolph-Macon College go beyond the classroom, working in project teams to solve real problems. It's a hands-on approach that fosters creative and critical thinking skills vital for addressing the complex issues of the 21st century.
More than a major: Complex challenges demand unique perspectives. Every Environmental Studies major develops an additional area of expertise through a minimum of 15 credit-hours' study in a different discipline, and double majors are encouraged.
Real-world partnerships: Student teams work with real clients, partners, and stakeholders. Recent projects have included restoring a stream for the Town of Ashland and partnering with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the James River Association to develop a restoration and conservation program for the James River's endangered Atlantic sturgeon population. Shannon White '10, now pursuing a master's degree in fisheries and wildlife science at Virginia Tech, conducted field research as a student and as an intern with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
Extra options: Environmental Studies majors choose internships with organizations such as the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Southern Environment Law Center, and private consulting firms. Other options include research projects and study abroad.
Graduate studies: Graduates of R-MC's Environmental Studies program are now pursuing advanced degrees at schools including Johns Hopkins, Duke and Virginia Tech. At the University of Michigan, Adam Rountrey '03 is a postdoctoral fellow and part of the team studying the perfectly preserved, 40,000-year-old remains of a woolly mammoth discovered in Siberia in 2007 and featured in the National Geographic film Waking the Baby Mammoth.
Careers: Graduates apply their interdisciplinary expertise to careers in diverse fields such as public policy, consulting, government and conservation.
| "I knew that one-on-one contact with professors is advantageous for personal growth and networking opportunities."
Whitney Worthington Jones '11, a political science and environmental studies major, hails from Lexington, Virginia. Jones left R-MC after her freshman year to travel, to work, and to realize her desire to commit to an education. She worked for the U.S. Department of Justice-U.S. Attorney's Office in Charlottesville, Virginia for two years as a paralegal assistant. Jones returned to R-MC with renewed zeal in 2009. Jones was an active member of many student organizations, including Macon Outdoors, the Yellow Jacket Newspaper, the Political Science Student Association (PSSA), Students for Environmental Action (SEA), Campus Events Committee, Habitat for Humanity, Commuter Student Association and the Pre-Law Society. Jones, who made the Dean's List in spring 2010, also made time to work on campus. She worked three days a week in the Marketing & Communications department writing press releases, distribute mailings and publications, writing stories for the alumni magazine and assisting with taking photos for R-MC publications and events. Jones also worked two days a week at the circulation desk in the McGraw-Page Library, assisting students in locating items, checking texts out and in, and arranging for inter-library loans.
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