{"411531":{"#nid":"411531","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Community-Minded Educators Convene at Piedmont Project","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp class=\u0022p1\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech recently chose to make creating sustainable communities a pillar of its undergraduate curriculum through the new Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain initiative, but it\u2019s not the only university in the city working to expand this aspect of undergraduate learning.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EEmory University\u2019s Piedmont Project, which began in 2001, is a faculty development program designed to help educators incorporate sustainability and environmental issues into their courses. This year, Emory invited Georgia Tech faculty to participate in a two-day summer workshop that\u2019s part of the project.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EMonica Halka, associate director for the Honors Program, took the opportunity to meet with peers from around the area to discuss how they are addressing sustainable communities in their classrooms. Participants came from disciplines as varied as health sciences, dance, film, or environmental studies.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cWe all had different perspectives on sustainability \u2014 there are so many ways to think of it \u2014 but with a focus on place: the Piedmont,\u201d Halka said, referring to the geographical region that encompasses the Atlanta area.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EPart of the two-day workshop discussed making personal connections with community partners to find the right opportunities for university partnerships. Some outside groups may want to work with students but are not aware of some of the challenges, such as trying to fit a project into the timeline of a semester.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cYou can\u2019t do this work unless you have personal connections,\u201d Halka said. \u201cYou have to find people who want to work with students and, really, who have a project ready to go.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EWhen these challenges are faced and worked through, though, the partnerships can be extremely rewarding for both sides. Halka teaches an urban forests class that focuses on the role of trees in cities, frequently partnering with Trees Atlanta. One recent project was to conduct a tree survival inventory to help the organization determine which trees grow best in which places in the city. They also have worked with Georgia Tech Facilities Management on a soil study to determine the same thing on campus, and to look at stormwater management.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cStudents just love it,\u201d she said. \u201cThey feel like they\u2019re doing something real.\u201d Many of Halka\u2019s students have continued to volunteer with partner organizations such as Trees Atlanta, even after they finish their work in the course.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EThe Piedmont Project also was a chance for university peers to find ways to collaborate with one other. This year, Halka hopes to work with a professor from Georgia Perimeter College who specializes in microbiology and can assist with training students on how to take soil samples in urban environments. In exchange, Halka will introduce the Georgia Perimeter group to Piedmont Park, where she routinely takes classes for field work.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EWhile Georgia Tech has an influence around the globe, Halka emphasized the importance of working with local communities and doing work on and around Tech\u2019s home.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cIf you can\u2019t get your own house in order, how can you go out to other places to help?\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EIn recent years, she\u2019s made a concerted effort to work community involvement into Honors Program courses. Chris Burke, director of community relations for Government and Community Relations, teaches a course focused on public school outreach. Kelly Comfort, associate professor in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, has taught a class that incorporates outreach with Hispanic communities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EThe biggest challenge Halka has found in getting more faculty involved is that they are not formally trained on how to do it.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cIt\u2019d be nice if it were the culture here to get involved in this work,\u201d she said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EAn experimental atomic physicist by trade, Halka transitioned into working in sustainability after coming to Georgia Tech nine years ago. While teaching a class that required students to calculate their carbon footprints, she discovered hers was larger than anyone\u2019s, thanks to the international travel she took several times a year. She began trying to offset her emissions by volunteering with Trees Atlanta, which led to the development of her urban forests course.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cI found that the work I was doing wasn\u2019t benefiting the world,\u201d she said.\u0026nbsp;\u201cUrban forest work is kind of a nascent science, but I hope I\u2019m becoming one of the experts in my old age.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EMonica Halka, associate director for the Honors Program, talks about the experience.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Monica Halka, associate director for the Honors Program, talks about the experience."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2015-06-08 10:22:13","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:18:29","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-06-08T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-06-08T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/serve-learn-sustain.gatech.edu","title":"Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain"},{"url":"http:\/\/honorsprogram.gatech.edu\/","title":"Georgia Tech Honors Program"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"23411","name":"community outreach"},{"id":"479","name":"Green Buzz"},{"id":"4201","name":"honors program"},{"id":"167070","name":"serve\u2022learn\u2022sustain"},{"id":"167890","name":"service learning"},{"id":"166890","name":"sustainability"},{"id":"170812","name":"sustainable communities"},{"id":"350","name":"trees"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:kristen.bailey@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EKristen Bailey\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}