Denison University
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

Geosciences Major/Minor In the Department of Geosciences we investigate the Earth in the broadest sense: how it formed, how it evolved and continues to evolve, how Earth systems interact to produce the environment in which we live, and how present and future changes may affect the habitability of Earth. The central goal of the department is to educate students about the nature and history of the Earth, the processes that shape the Earth, and the impacts those processes have on human populations. An understanding of the Earth is an important component of global citizenship. Many critical environmental issues face humanity, including global climate change, water shortages, loss of arable land, natural hazards such as earthquakes and flooding, and the availability of petroleum and other energy resources. Citizens and professionals with training in the geosciences will contribute to addressing these and other problems, while increasing opportunities for humans to live sustainably on the Earth. Environmental Studies Major/Minor Environmental Studies is an interdisciplinary inquiry into the relationship between humans and the environment. Both a major and a minor are available to students with an interest in the rigorous study of these issues. The major requires students to develop a specific environmental focus as a concentration in addition to the environmental core and distribution courses. The minor in ENVS allows students to integrate an environmental perspective with their major field of study. As an interdisciplinary area, Environmental Studies draws on work in the natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and the arts. It endeavors to bridge these many intellectual approaches and perspectives in the hope that students will gain a deeper understanding both of the environmental concerns facing the world and of proactive opportunities for change. Among issues of concern and investigation are resource utilization, the impact of technology on ecosystems, relationships between the environment and sociocultural systems, geographic information systems analysis, environmental economics and policy, conservation of biological diversity, nature writing, alternative dispute resolution, environmental psychology, political ecology, environmental photography, sustainable agriculture and environmental ethics, among many others. Global Commerce Major/Minor Learning goals for the Global Commerce major include the development of an advanced understanding of the complex ways in which the economy and trade are connected to culture, the environment, social movements, and other global factors; immersion in the study of a particular geographic area—or the connections between multiple regions for the transregional option—emphasizing the study of culture, history, social context, and language; building well-developed cultural fluency skills, including intermediate-level facility with at least one foreign language; the development of student creativity and autonomy in creating a meaningful and coherent global focus or transregional option; the integration of a significant off-campus experience with the curricular study of commerce and cultural context; the development of a sound understanding of the elements of commerce, including familiarity with basic aspects of financial accounting, spreadsheet proficiency, business language and etiquette, and business ethics; and the development of a supportive and engaged student cohort in the major.

The numbers reported are for the 2017-2018 academic year and include only those students eligible to graduate that year. In addition students minoring in a program are counted if the requirements of the minor include sustainability learning outcomes. Denison maintains an internal password protected website where most of this information resides. Public access web pages have limited information on this topic.