WC’s Program in Computer Mapping Earns Prestigious Foundation Award at Conference

Students Steve McFall and Mariah Perkins join Stewart Bruce on
stage to received the award from USGIF president Keith Masback.

ORLANDO, FL—The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation has awarded the Washington College geographic information systems (GIS) program its 2012 Academic Achievement Award. Program director Stewart Bruce and two of his GIS students, senior Mariah Perkins and freshman Steve McFall, accepted the award on stage October 10 at the annual GEOINT Symposium in Orlanda, Fla.

The award announcement summed up the Washington College GIS Program this way:

“The GIS Program at Washington College, part of the Center for Environment and Society, is exploring radical and disruptive innovations to get youth interested in and excited about the geospatial intelligence tradecraft. They have developed programs such as youth summer camps and after-school programs that are combined with undergraduate experiential learning opportunities. The GIS Program currently employs over 45 undergraduates working on a wide variety of funded GeoInt related projects. While the program is established and operated as an entrepreneurial microenterprise, their number one mission is the experiential learning opportunities for their undergraduate students and the outreach mission they have to engage K-12 youth. And all of this has one purpose: to place these youth on clear paths to become productive members of the future geospatial intelligence workforce.”

GIS program director Stewart Bruce, Assistant Director of the Center for Environment & Society, says his team is “very honored” by the award, which he views as “recognition of the dedication and hard work of our talented team of Washington College students, and the professional staff that guides their experiential learning.” He adds that GIS applications are being used increasingly throughout the liberal-arts curriculum at Washington College. “I often remind people that back in the late 1700’s when the College was founded, we taught our undergraduate students navigation, surveying, geography, ancient geography, and yes, even globemaking.  These skills were considered very important skills for the future leaders of our country then and now that the world is even a more dangerous place, these are skills that our future leaders need to master as well.”

Also honored at the symposium were George Mason University’s Center for Geospatial Intelligence, which earned the Academic Research Award, the U.S. State Department’s Humanitarian Information Unit (Government Award), U.S. Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, (Military Award), and DigitalGlobe and the Satellite Sentinel Project (Industry Award).

To see video of the awards, go to http://geointv.com/archive/geoint-2012-usgif-awards-program-presentations/. 

GIS students find that a liberal-arts education and on-the-job tech skills are a winning combination

Mariah Perkins works in the field for a GIS lab project.

CHESTERTOWN, MD—In today’s economy, few college students graduate with both diplomas and job offers in hand. Thanks to their work with Washington College’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) lab, seniors Mariah Perkins and Spencer Van Cise will be counting themselves among the fortunate few. They are proof of the effectiveness of the growing work-study program run by the GIS lab, where some 60 undergraduates are now applying their computer mapping skills to a variety of projects for both the College and for outside organizations and agencies.

            Perkins, an anthropology major from Frederick, Md., and Van Cise, an environmental studies major from Arcadia, Calif., each completed a summer internship with technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton and returned to campus with assurances that a full-time position would await them following their graduation next May.  These are jobs with “very generous” starting salaries, adds Stewart Bruce, the director of the GIS program at Washington College who has mentored the two students.

            Bruce’s connection to Booz Allen Hamilton principal Susan Kalweit, who serves with him on the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation Academic Advisory Board, helped Perkins and Van Cise land the internships. Both had worked in the campus GIS lab since freshman year. “I knew they were outstanding members of GIS who would represent Washington College well,” says Bruce. “They more than exceeded expectations in their internships; according to Sue [Kalweit], they ‘set the bar very high.’”

            Van Cise is continuing to work part-time for Booz Allen Hamilton during the school year, working remotely on a company-supplied computer. He also puts in 10 hours a week in the Washington College GIS lab, honing the skills he’s been building over the last three years.

            Perkins, on top of her Booz Allen Hamilton internship and job offer, earned a prestigious $5,000 undergraduate scholarship from the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation. She is studying in Finland for the semester but will likely join Van Cise in working for both the company and the College when returns to Chestertown in the spring.  “I’m happy for these students,” says Bruce with obvious pride. “These jobs are really a fantastic opportunity.”  He is not surprised that such job offers can come to students at a small liberal arts college without a GIS major. “Companies want critical thinkers who come from a wide range of backgrounds—anthropology, biology, environmental studies, etc.—because they want and need those interdisciplinary teams,” he says.

            The Washington College GIS program is striking for the number of undergraduates who are using cutting-edge computer mapping technology to complete real-world projects for clients. The 60 student workers, many of them first-years and sophomores, work under professional staff supervision on projects that include mapping crime statistics for the Maryland State Police, creating 3-D cityscapes for town planners and helping conservationists map critical areas and waterways. A recent addition to the project list is helping the Upper Shore Regional Council create an online mapping tool for its Harvest Directory, a listing of the agricultural products and services available in Maryland’s Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne’s Counties.

            “You know, the classroom is great, the Intro to GIS course is great, but in the lab, students are on a voyage of independent discovery,” says Bruce. “They don’t know the answers in advance, and they’re able to work it out on their own using a combination of technical skills and the critical thinking skills that a broad liberal arts education can strengthen.” Working on practical GIS projects at WC, he adds, gives them a competitive edge in the job market.”  

First-year student Steve McFall works part time in the GIS lab.

            Another GIS student well on his way to gaining that edge is freshman Steve McFall. After attending four of Bruce’s GIS summer programs for young people, he earned a $2,000 scholarship from the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation his senior year at Smethport Area High School in Smethport, Penn. McFall began working in WC’s GIS lab last summer, before his freshman year began.

            “Back in the summer after my sixth grade year I met Stew at his GIS camp at Penn State and completely fell in love with GIS,” says McFall. “Two years later the camp moved down here to Washington College and I decided to come, as well. I fell further in love with the technology and I also really liked the campus.”

            McFall will be one of a handful of high-achieving students joining Bruce and his Washington College contingent this October at the Geospatial Intelligence Symposium in Orlando, Fla. The symposium draws GIS leaders from business, military and public service sectors and offers the students a chance to network and explore career opportunities.  

            For Bruce and the GIS program he has built at Washington College, such trips are one more way to help students map their own futures.

  ­–– Grace Arenas

           

College GIS Lab to Unveil 3-D Images that Recreate Historic Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment

CHESTERTOWN, MD—On Thursday, April 19, the Washington College Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Program will present its 3-D reconstruction of the Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment, an important Revolutionary War garrison in New Jersey. The presentation will begin at 7:30 p.m in the Litrenta Lecture Hall, Toll Science Center, on the College campus (300 Washington Avenue). On hand to explain the project will be Dr. John Seidel, an archaeologist and director of the Center for Environment and Society at Washington College. He will be joined by Stewart Bruce, the coordinator of the GIS lab, and student interns who worked on the project. The presentation is free and open to the public.

The Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment was the winter headquarters of General Knox and the Continental Artillery in late 1778 and early 1779 and is considered to be the nation’s first military academy. Using archeological findings and other historical records, the Washington College GIS Lab created a preliminary reconstruction of the site, which once held barracks, officers' quarters, workshops, and warehouses. At its heart was an academy building for military training.

In creating the 3-D maps of the site, student interns in the GIS lab used computerized mapping software such as Google Sketchup and GeoWeb3D to convert geographic and archeological data into the 3-D maps. Historians are especially excited about how GIS systems can be used to create interactive maps of now-nonexistent historical sites. At the Pluckemin site, for example, the only surviving building is the Jacobus Vanderveer House, General Knox’s former headquarters.

“This cantonment was a remarkable accomplishment,” says John Seidel, who served as the Pluckemin Archeological Project leader in the 1980s and continues to head a consortium working on the extensive artifact collection. “And it is just as remarkable that the complex was abandoned after just one winter. It was used the next winter as a hospital, but after that it reverted to field and forest.” Seidel narrates a video about the site on the Cantonment web site.

Throughout the 1980s, a non-profit group supported surveying and excavation work that provided the foundation for the historical interpretation happening at the site today. The preliminary 3-D reconstruction of the Cantonment being presented on the 19th was commissioned by the Friends of the Jacobus Vanderveer House. It will help the Jacobus Vanderveer House Museum interpret the historic site for visitors and explain its significance in American history. The GIS Lab hopes this reconstruction might lead to a more detailed visualization in the near future and has submitted a proposal for continuing the project.

For more information about the 3-D reconstruction of the Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment or the Washington College Geographic Information Systems Program, please visit gis.washcoll.edu and www.jvanderveerhouse.com.

Washington College Scientists, GIS Lab, to Help Easton Assess Pollutants in Tred Avon Tributary

CHESTERTOWN, MD—Work begins this month to assess pollutants coming into Talbot County’s Tanyard Branch, a stream that feeds into the Tred Avon River, and set priorities for creating a cleaner, healthier waterway. Funded by a grant from the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program Office, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Chesapeake Bay Trust, the town of Easton has awarded a contract for the project to a partnership that includes Washington College, the Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy and Aloft Aerial Photography.

Tanyard Branch is a small stream that begins east of U.S Route 50 and north of Maryland Route 328. It flows under Route 50 through Easton, is piped underground at the Spring Hill Cemetery and continues under Easton Utilities where it emerges again. The stream then empties into the Bay Street ponds before emptying into the upper Tred Avon River. The Tred Avon, in turn, leads to the Choptank River, which feeds the Chesapeake Bay.

The Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy will conduct on-the-ground assessments, monitoring water quality and identifying and assessing potential ways to reduce pollution loads into Tanyard Branch. Washington College’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Lab, part of the school’s Center for Environment and Society, will use state-of-the art technology to identify the watershed boundaries, map the storm-drain network and assess areas of impervious coverage (mostly paved surfaces such as roads and parking lots that rain water cannot permeate).

In addition, faculty members in the College’s chemistry, environmental studies, and biology departments along with scientists from its Center for Environment and Society, will use a new instrument called a mass spectrometer to analyze water samples for chemical pollutants. The spectrometer, purchased with funds from the National Science Foundation, can detect even very low levels of a variety of pollutants.

Adding to the portrait of the watershed, Aloft Aerial Photography will collect high-resolution aerial video of the watershed before and after major storm events.

Once the assessment has been completed, the Town of Easton will hold a series of public meetings where the community can learn about the results and weigh in on the potential components of a watershed management plan. After receiving this public input, the project partners will create a watershed management planning document and present it to the Town Council for consideration.

“We are excited to receive this grant,” says Choptank Riverkeeper Drew Koslow, “It’s important work and will lead to the identification of real projects that, once implemented, will improve water quality in Tanyard Branch.”

Stewart Bruce, the GIS Program Coordinator for Washington College, says his students, along with College staff and faculty, are eager to work with the Town of Easton and the other project partners. “This kind of real-world experience is great for our students and will give them a chance to use their skills to contribute significantly to the community.”

The project, which is expected to be completed by spring of 2013, also will include outreach to homeowners, businesses, and farmers who live and work in the watershed. For more information contact Doug Levin at the Center for Environment and Society: dlevin2@washcoll.edu.

Washington College Offers High Schoolers a Week Of Hands-On Geospatial Discoveries June 24-30

CHESTERTOWN, MD--Washington College will host a residential one-week summer learning program in Geospatial technology for middle- and high-school students June 24-30 on the Chestertown campus.

The Geospatial Discoveries Summer Program offers a unique summer experience for students entering grades 7-12, with three tracks: 3D and virtual-world development, marine exploration and discovery, and CSI crime mapping analysis. The program will take advantage of the newly expanded Geographic Information Systems (GIS) lab at the College, and the learning and recreation opportunities on the nearby Chester River.

“By the end of the week, these youth will have understanding and hands-on skills in geospatial technologies and know how they are used in everyday life,” says Stewart Bruce, coordinator of the GIS program at Washington College.

Students in the 3D sessions will be introduced to tools such as Google Sketch-Up, GeoWeb3D and the advanced Unity 3D virtual world game development software. Using 3D recreations of either the town of Chestertown circa 1920 or the Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment as it stood in 1778 in New Jersey, they will establish story plots and designs for a video game.

The CSI sessions will focus on how GIS analysis can help law enforcement agencies prevent crimes. Students will learn how to visually map crime statistics and predict where police need to increase their patrols and surveillance.

In the Marine Exploration and Discovery section, students will board the Washington College research vessel Callinectes to explore the Chester River and learn to map the river bottom with sophisticated instruments. Working with a former NOAA scientist, they also will compete to build and launch a Basic Observation Buoy that measures water quality and to create a working underwater robot.

This is the fifth summer the GIS program at Washington College has hosted a residential summer program, and director Bruce says it is satisfying to see many of the same students return to build on their past learning. He promises plenty of fun outside the labs, too, from kayaking and pool parties to movie night.

Tuition for the week is $1,295, with a discount for reservations made by May 4 and some scholarship funds available. The tuition includes housing in Washington College residence halls and meals in the College cafeteria.

For more information visit http://gis.washcoll.edu, or contact program coordinator Samantha Bulkilvish at 443-282-0016 or sbulkilvish2@washcoll.edu.