The university has announced the formal merger of the former Department of Geosciences with Environmental Sciences. The new Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences is chaired by Dr. Sherri A. Mason.
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Dr. Mason explained that the independent missions of each area will be merged. She had been working to get more exposure for the university’s Interdisciplinary Studies major in Environmental Sciences and the merger is the first step in that process, while the Department of Geosciences was in the process of a leadership change. Additionally, Dr. Mason noted, while the job market for geology/geosciences is quite high (a 21 percent increase by 2020 according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, 50 percent faster growth than all other occupations) the positions tend to be environmentally focused, as opposed to in the past, when they were largely focused on fossil fuel production. With this shift, the merging of Geology and Environmental Sciences made the most sense, said Dr. Mason, and is beneficial to students as well as to programs, faculty and the institution.
Majors offered through the merged department include Geology, Geochemistry, Earth Sciences and Environmental Sciences, with minors available in Geographic Information Systems and Environmental Studies. There are several scholarships open to majors from endowment funds created through the Fredonia College Foundation. As a result of the merger, Dr. Mason noted, the department is planning to propose a new major in Environmental Geology.
The department currently has about 90 majors total within the new department. While it is hoped that additional faculty will be hired, there are currently four tenured faculty, one full-time contingent faculty member and adjunct teaching faculty.
