The Bachelor of Science in Applied Environmental Spatial Analysis is a blend of both education and training designed to produce graduates with skills that meet the needs of employers in the Geospatial Technology field with little or no further training by employers. 

     The Applied Environmental Spatial Analysis (AESA) degree is composed of a focused curriculum built on a firm foundation in science. The educational base for this degree is made up of four components seamlessly integrated with a core of GIS (Figure 1).  The components of Geographic Information Science, Remote Sensing (RS), and Information Technology (IT) combine to make up the field of Geospatial Technology. The fourth component is environmental science with a focus on water resources.

     Within the proposed curriculum there is presently one course in the information technology (IT) area (GISC 4500 - Application Development in GIS) and two courses in the remote sensing (RS) area (GISC 4350 – Remote Sensing and GISC 4360 – Digital Image Processing). The geospatial technology field is rapidly expanding. As new applications are developed for business and industry, Gainesville College will expand its IT and/or RS options to meet the needs of the changing market place.

     The concept for this degree was to combine the GSC Geographic Information Science and the Environmental Science certificates to create a new B.S. degree. The courses included in the new Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Environmental Spatial Analysis are shown in Table I of the curriculum page. The science and mathematics courses that should be taken during the first two years of the associate degree are shown in Table II of the curriculum page.

DEGREE GOALS AND OUTCOMES

     The Geographic Information Science (GIS) is central to the watershed characterization and is the tool that is employed to assimilate, analyze, and present the plethora of watershed data. Since this data is collected by professionals (i.e., engineers, geologists, hydrologists, biologists, chemists, political and social scientists, etc.) from a variety of disciplines, it is imperative that the well trained GIS professional have a fundamental understanding of the role that each of the disciplines employed play in the overall watershed characterization process.

Overall Goals of the Degree Program:

• The graduate will be able to conduct watershed investigations on small watersheds.

• The graduate will be able to assist in conducting watershed characterization studies on larger more complex watersheds as a member of a team.

General Learning Outcomes:

The graduate will:

• be conversant in a broad range of topics relating to freshwater ecology and environmental science

• be able to quantify a wide range of physical, chemical, and biological parameters relevant to freshwater research

• be able to recognize and diagnose ecological impairments caused by human activities in freshwater streams and wetlands

• be able to clearly communicate scientific findings, analyses, and predictions

• be able to interact effectively with a range of audiences (general public, stakeholders, decision makers, technical specialists)

• be able to use geospatial tools and GIS-based map displays to clarify key concepts in oral presentations and written reports

Specific Learning Outcomes:

The graduate will:

• be able to critically examine biological assemblages in lotic and lentic ecosystems, linking their structure to the landscape context and to human activities that influence the ecosystem

• be able to use standard Federal and State protocols to characterize the physical habitat, water quality, and biological integrity of stream ecosystems

• be able to classify and delineate wetland ecosystems based on surveys of plant communities and soil analyses

• be able to use software modeling tools to examine affects on water quality due to land cover change

• be able to use GIS-based models and field data to characterize watersheds:

  • display and analyze land uses, monitoring stations, point sources of pollution, and stream networks

  • integrate point and non-point source pollution data to predict water quality responses and ranges of variability for key parameters

    specify Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for common pollutants (fecal coliform bacteria, sediments, nutrients, biological oxygen demand)

  • design management alternatives to meet TMDL criteria and use simulation models to predict their effectiveness

  • use multispectral satellite/airborne imagery to extract the specific land cover for use as a base layer in GIS analysis

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