Academics
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Faculty Jodi Baker teaches classes in writing for the stage, as well as performance and movement.
Jason P. Smith
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Students in the Geology of Mount Desert Island class practice using a compass and taking field notes at Seawall Beach in Acadia National Park.
Sarah Hall
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Faculty member Davis Taylor teaches economics.
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Students presenting and discussing their entrepreneurship projects.
Jason P. Smith
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Students participating in a home energy audit.
Jason P. Smith
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Students work with instructor Gordon Longsworth on a GIS mapping project.
Jason P. Smith
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In the printmaking studio.
Jason P. Smith
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Faculty member Steve Ressel leads a class trip through Great Meadow in Acadia National Park.
Jason P. Smith
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Learning Spanish through immersion.
Jason P. Smith
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Student on a field trip for the course Ecology: Natural History.
Jason P. Smith
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Student performance in The Science of Comedy class.
Jason P. Smith
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Students assemble a weather station at the Peggy Rockefeller Farm. Data from this station, as well as a station on the COA campus, are available in real time online and appear on the Weather Underground maps.
Sarah Hall
Self-designed major… endless possibilities
Every COA student designs their own course of study in human ecology . Beyond a small core of degree requirements , there’s no set path. You give shape to your curriculum based on your interests and goals, exploring across multiple areas of study or digging deeper into a chosen focus.
Start browsing our courses »
Why we take a different approach
In the words of faculty member Rich Borden: “There is a tendency, especially in the academic world, to carve life into ever smaller pieces in order to make sense of it. All too often, the people who do this come to believe that is how the world really is. The aim of human ecology is to remind us that we are part of a complex and interactive living world. Its broad mandate calls us to cross the boundaries of traditional disciplines and seek fresh combinations of ideas. This demands a different approach to education—one which invites imagination and caring for the future. This is why COA was founded, and it is what we do best.”
