Environmental History Portfolio Project, Spring 2013
The Environmental History Portfolio Project is both a case study and web project that explores the history of environmental pollution in the state of Michigan. During the spring 2013 semester, 302 students wrote an environmental history of a preselected superfund site to contribute to a larger web and book project for the Department of History and Great Lakes Institute for Sustainable Systems (GLISS) at Central Michigan University. In February 2013, the class voted to investigate contamination in St. Louis, Michigan, where a former chemical plant created one of the costliest superfund sites in the United States.
This portfolio is the product of the students. Each entry has been carefully researched and thoughtfully written by a member of the class. Throughout the writing process, students were encouraged to get out of their comfort zones, listen with open minds, and use innovative research methods to respectfully study new points of view. These posts are therefore an exercise in critical thinking, historical analysis, and environmental interpretation. This project also gave students the opportunity to experiment with different forms of media, share the geospatial data they collected and interpreted, and showcase their original historical research. More importantly, it encouraged them to engage one another in conversations about important events that directly influence their lives and the world around them.
In addition to the geospatial representations of contamination in St. Louis below, you will find the course book and companion K-12 lesson plans.
This portfolio is the product of the students. Each entry has been carefully researched and thoughtfully written by a member of the class. Throughout the writing process, students were encouraged to get out of their comfort zones, listen with open minds, and use innovative research methods to respectfully study new points of view. These posts are therefore an exercise in critical thinking, historical analysis, and environmental interpretation. This project also gave students the opportunity to experiment with different forms of media, share the geospatial data they collected and interpreted, and showcase their original historical research. More importantly, it encouraged them to engage one another in conversations about important events that directly influence their lives and the world around them.
In addition to the geospatial representations of contamination in St. Louis below, you will find the course book and companion K-12 lesson plans.
Get Acquainted with St. Louis: Geospatial Representations
A Google Earth Tour of St. Louis, Michigan, created by Sarah Krakowiak and Matt Grew
hst_302_st._louis.kmz | |
File Size: | 3 kb |
File Type: | kmz |
Contamination in St. Louis, Michigan, created by Jeffrey Malinowski, Angela Blevins, and Jeri Glomstead
chemicals_in_the_pine_powerpoint.pptx | |
File Size: | 3806 kb |
File Type: | pptx |
A History of Environmental Contamination in St. Louis, Michigan
Chapter 1: The Plant Site
"The Early Environmental History of St. Louis, Michigan" by Robert Romzek
romzek.pdf | |
File Size: | 150 kb |
File Type: |
"Negative Side Effects of the St. Louis Plant Site Contamination" by Sara Zielinski
zielinski.pdf | |
File Size: | 202 kb |
File Type: |
Chapter 2: The Pine River
"The Pine River: Contamination" by Bruce Gordon
gordon.pdf | |
File Size: | 155 kb |
File Type: |
"The Pine River: Cleanup" by Denis Mayowski
mayowski.pdf | |
File Size: | 143 kb |
File Type: |
Chapter 3: Communities North of the Plant
"Contaminated Cycle" by Cody Kater
kater.pdf | |
File Size: | 206 kb |
File Type: |
"Case Study: Environmental Contamination in St. Louis, Michigan" by Jacob Glunt
glunt.pdf | |
File Size: | 223 kb |
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Chapter 4: Communities South of the Plant
"Environment and Economics: The Stigma of St. Louis" by David Zimmerman
zimmerman.pdf | |
File Size: | 142 kb |
File Type: |
"Environmental History Case Study of St. Louis, Michigan" by Rebecca Derderian
derderian.pdf | |
File Size: | 147 kb |
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Chapter 5: Schools
"A Brief Environmental History of St. Louis, Michigan" (High School) by Jeffrey Malinowski
malinowski.pdf | |
File Size: | 63 kb |
File Type: |
"Perception vs. Reality: St. Louis Contamination" (Nikkari Elementary) by Angela Blevins
blevins.pdf | |
File Size: | 257 kb |
File Type: |
Chapter 6: Public Lands
"St. Louis, Michigan: Oak Grove Cemetery" by Sarah Krakowiak
krakowiak.pdf | |
File Size: | 322 kb |
File Type: |
"Inconspicuous Contamination: Velsicol Chemical Corporation and Hidden Oaks Golf Course" by Matt Grew
grew.pdf | |
File Size: | 401 kb |
File Type: |
Companion K-12 Lesson Plans
Water Filtration Activity, created by James Sunderland III, Sara Zielinski, Denis Mayowski, and Bruce Gordon
water_filtration_lesson_plan.pdf | |
File Size: | 74 kb |
File Type: |
water_filtration_activity.pdf | |
File Size: | 46 kb |
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water_filtration_activity_student_worksheet.pdf | |
File Size: | 45 kb |
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pine_river_powerpoint.pptx | |
File Size: | 1748 kb |
File Type: | pptx |
plant_site_contamination_powerpoint.pptx | |
File Size: | 93 kb |
File Type: | pptx |
History of St. Louis, Michigan, created by James Asmus, Rebecca Derderian, and David Zimmerman
history_of_st._louis_lesson_plan.pdf | |
File Size: | 66 kb |
File Type: |
Environmental Pollution of St. Louis, Michigan, created by Jacob Glunt, Robert Romzek, and Cody Kater
environmental_pollution_of_st._louis_lesson_plan.pdf | |
File Size: | 56 kb |
File Type: |
environmental_pollution_of_st._louis_powerpoint.pptx | |
File Size: | 1543 kb |
File Type: | pptx |