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2025-2026 Academic Year

Fall 2025

FYSM 100 First-Year Seminar
The First-Year Seminar (FYS) introduces students to Dickinson as a "community of inquiry" by developing habits of mind essential to liberal learning. Through the study of a compelling issue or broad topic chosen by their faculty member, students will: - Critically analyze information and ideas - Examine issues from multiple perspectives - Discuss, debate and defend ideas, including one's own views, with clarity and reason - Develop discernment, facility and ethical responsibility in using information, and - Create clear academic writing The small group seminar format of this course promotes discussion and interaction among students and their professor. In addition, the professor serves as students' initial academic advisor. This course does not duplicate in content any other course in the curriculum and may not be used to fulfill any other graduation requirement.

ENST 350 Environmental Health
This course will focus on the intricate bidirectional relationship between human activity and the natural environment, emphasizing its implications for human health. Class meetings will encompass a broad spectrum of foundational (epidemiology, toxicology, and exposure assessment methods) and integrative topics, including the quality and safety of the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and our living and working environments, along with the evolving influence of weather and climate, and the dynamic fluctuations within various levels of our ecosystems. The integration of systems thinking into environmental health sciences is central to coursework, enabling students to analyze complex interactions within ecosystems and assess their impact on human health. Laboratory meetings will allow students to explore various methodologies for evaluating environmental health quality and leveraging available data resources to inform public health interventions. A keen focus will be the understanding of how environmental exposure – health outcome relationships are hypothesized, established, and clearly communicated through data, and ultimately, text, graphics, and speech. Students will be expected to become prefatorily familiar with environmental data analysis tools like MS Excel and R statistical language, although previous data analysis experience is not expected or required. This experience will culminate in a field research project that explores indoor and outdoor environmental quality, and air pollution. Prerequisite: 161 and 162 or CHEM 131 or permission of instructor.

ENST 500 Independent Study

Spring 2026

ENST 305 Env Epidemiology in Practice
This course explores how environmental exposures shape human health, with a focus on applying scientific tools and methods to real-world challenges. Students will learn the core principles of environmental epidemiology, including study design, exposure assessment, and data analysis, and will apply these skills through project-based, place-based research. A substantial component of the course involves hands-on work with advanced air quality monitoring systems and community-scale sensor networks, enabling students to investigate how pollutants vary across landscapes and populations. Case studies and fieldwork will emphasize the health impacts of air pollution in rural and agricultural contexts, while also considering broader issues of environmental justice and policy. By the end of the semester, students will be able to integrate field data, epidemiological methods, and public health perspectives to evaluate human-environment interactions and propose science-based solutions.

ENST 406 Air Quality and Beyond
This senior seminar uses air pollution as a lens to develop sustainable responses to contemporary environmental challenges. Students will develop a deep understanding of the scientific, policy, and social dimensions of air quality while considering how environmental problems interconnect across systems and scales. The course emphasizes practical skills, including environmental assessment, community engagement, policy analysis, stakeholder mapping, collaborative research methods, and effective science communication. Learning takes place through lectures, discussions, case studies, fieldwork, and data analysis exercises that highlight the role of evidence in guiding decisions. Students will practice translating complex findings into clear and compelling narratives for diverse audiences, while also gaining experience in navigating ethical dilemmas and conflicting values that shape environmental decision-making. By the end of the seminar, students will be prepared to apply integrated, interdisciplinary approaches to real-world environmental problems and to design sustainable, actionable solutions in partnership with community and global stakeholders.