Pre-College Hudson River Ecology Course

The Hudson River Ecology Course at the Sarah Lawrence College Center for the Urban River at Beczak is an introductory ecology course. Students have the option of taking this course for 1 transferable college credit.

This course is geared towards 11th and 12th graders in high school, first year undergraduate students or anyone who is interested in learning more about the Hudson River. Students will explore concepts such as the local geography, water quality, organism relationships, populations, aquatic habitats and human impacts. In conjunction with the concepts, students will engage in outdoor and laboratory data collection such as sediment surveying, plankton collection, fish identification, and bacteria monitoring. 

Students are also introduced to a variety of environmental-oriented careers to give them more insight into the realm of green careers.

Morning portions of the course will happen at CURB, and entail a mixture of lectures, group work, and individual data collection. The evening portion of the course students complete remotely on our course page.  

The week-long intensive course happens every summer, usually in July. Please see Sarah Lawrence College’s Pre-College Course Website for more details, pricing, dates, and registration. 

For teachers or educators who work with high school students and are interested in incorporating these concepts into your own practice, please check out our Hudson River Ecology Curriculum