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Volume 79, Issue 26 Web Edition SERVING BREVARD COLLEGE SINCE 1935
April 11, 2014
A lesson in sustainability
By Sam Blakley
staff Writer
B CE 211 is ending, but environmental
awareness is here to stay.
BCE 211 is an Environmental Science class
that focuses on environmental sensitivity
and awareness. If students “understand the
implications of environmental issues,” which
is the goal of BCE 211 as stated by the 2013-
2014 course catalog, then they can recognize
the harmful effects of their lifestyles and how
they can live more sustainably.
However, as many students have
experienced, this class can be very difficult to
take because of scheduling troubles. Everyone
had to take the same course and there were a
limited number of spots and classes because,
after all, there are only so many professors
that specialize in this topic. In addition to
these issues, we have the wonderful problem
of a growing student population. Together,
all of these factors were making BCE 211
increasingly difficult to take.
There was another problem with requiring
all students to take the same course: what
about the students that aren’t science-minded
students? If every art, music, and English
major has to take a science course, will they
take anything from it? Some students who
took the class said that it “dragged on,” is
“boring,” “depressing,” or “useless”. One
student, Brevard College senior Kara Fohner,
said “BCE 211 would have better benefited
me if I had a stronger scientific background.
While I appreciated the challenge, I tried
to take it my first semester here and felt
swamped in information. I eventually
withdrew from the course.”
Of course, other students feel differently.
I have personally seen many a student go
in apathetic and come out inspired. Emily
Crowley, a sophomore at Brevard, said she
thoroughly enjoyed BCE 211. “I was already
interested,” she said, “but the class showed
me new things and I learned how to be
environmentally aware.”
But in a class where student opinion is so
polarized and at its base, unsustainable, what
do we do?
The answer, after much deliberating and a
faculty vote there have been changes made
to the curriculum. BCE 211 is no more. At
first glance, this change worried me, but after
sitting down with a number of professors
who will be teaching the courses to replace
See 'Sustainability,' page 2