INTRODUCING STUDENTS TO PALEOCLIMATE RESEARCH IN A LIBERAL ARTS SETTING (MUSKINGUM COLLEGE, OHIO): JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTIONS/U.S. SCIENCE SUPPORT PROGRAM'S UNDERGRADUATE SUPPLEMENT AWARD AT WORK

Muskingum College is a small liberal arts college (enrollment 1700) located in New Concord, Ohio. As part of graduation requirements, all students must complete two lab-based science courses. As a result, science faculty interact with at least 50 non-majors, in addition to majors, each semester.

The Joint Oceanographic Institutions/U.S. Science Support Program (JOI/USSSP) recently awarded a post-cruise undergraduate supplement award for use at Muskingum College. This award was a result of the author's participation on Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 306: North Atlantic Climate II. This abstract discusses the advantages to the students and to the college of the JOI/USSSP undergraduate award program.

Due to the award, twelve students were hired this past academic year and worked in the Department of Geology's sedimentology lab, processing sediment samples from the North Atlantic with the goal of extracting ice-rafted debris (IRD) and producing a glacial history for the region. Students involved ranged from freshmen to seniors, although the majority were underclassmen. In addition, their majors not only included geology and environmental science, but they also included economics, mathematics, conservation science, and biology.

Naturally, there was a transition period in the beginning in which students from diverse backgrounds were incorporated into a large lab team with a common goal. The end result produced IRD histories for sites in the North Atlantic Ocean. In addition, there was an increased interest in paleoclimate research, especially global climate change issues, by the students at Muskingum College. The twelve students directly affected by the JOI/USSSP undergraduate supplement award took their research knowledge into their science courses and into the broader campus community, actively participating in campus paleoclimate discussions and activities throughout the academic year.