We’ve been in Monrovia for a few weeks now.  The GIS lab is mostly set up, the maps have been filed back into their drawers, and the HVAC contractors are trying to get the inside humidity down below 80%.  All in all, it’s working out ok.

If you are a member of the Geography Alumni Group on Facebook, check out Dawn’s pictures of the deserted Monroe Hall and the inside of Monrovia.  If you aren’t a member, I’ve copied some … Read the rest

Now that exams are over and grades are in, it’s time to say both our usual good-byes and Congratulations to graduating seniors and to say good-bye to Monroe Hall – if only for a couple of years.

So, Congratulations to the members of class of 2009 (and Dec. 2008): Arianna Drumond, Amanda Walkins, Baker Pruiksma, Brittany Cook, Chris Clark, Emily Fornof, Elizabeth Bouton, Gretchen Gorecki, Hilary Lufkin, Colin Deyman, Krystal Bopp, Jacqui Newman, Leah Shopneck, Karen Portillo, James Blacker, Jonathan … Read the rest

I’d hoped to provide everyone with an update on the Monroe Hall renovation earlier, but shortly after my last post on this topic we got bad news about the project budget that threw a lot of the plan into question. Basically, we had to ask the architects to cut $1.5 million from the project which led to a plan that reduced the average size of faculty offices to around 90 square feet.

The departments involved (Political Science, History, Sociology) got … Read the rest

Here are the preliminary plans for the Geography offices and labs after Monroe is renovated. The best news is that we keep the space known to most of you as "The Cart lab." In order to schedule an increasing number of physical geography, GIS, cartography, and remote sensing lab sessions, however, we do have to partition the space. We hope to make this partitition movable so we can still open up space for both planned events and informal gatherings

Geography … Read the rest

" . . . . until you take the wheels off (The TrailerPark Troubadours)

Almost a decade ago, I was driving through the mountains of Eastern Kentucky when this tune came over the radio. The Troubadours painted a comic but sympathetic picture of this iconic American Landscape.

So why does it come to mind now? In Spring 2009, the Geography Department will find itself in a set of trailers modular units while Monroe Hall is being renovated. Our home … Read the rest