The weekend was wet and cold, weather that drives most of us
indoors. Not Geologists. They’d rather be on the rocks any time. In spite of
less-than-ideal conditions, the 48th Annual Virginia Geologic Field
Conference held on Saturday October 27 was well attended by 60 academics and professionals
and 20 students – 11 from Virginia community colleges.
Reynolds Professor Karen Layou, and Geology Instructor
Lynsey LeMay from Thomas Nelson Community College organized a pre-field trip
Mentoring Workshop to get students started on the next day’s adventure. “For the
workshop, we did a series of “geoscientist speed dating” sessions, where
students chatted in small groups with one or two professionals, then they
rotated. We ended with a discussion of knowledge, skills and attitudes
that allow you to be successful in geoscience careers,” said Professor Layou.
Layou
and LeMay organized the first of these workshops in 2017. About this year’s
workshop Layou said: “Most people don’t know a geoscientist personally,
so they don’t know the various ways you can be employed as a
geoscientist. There was a fantastic energy in the room as students learned
more about the professionals' jobs and educational experiences. Because
we had a diverse group of professionals (field vs. office-based/private vs.
public sector), students were able to explore many options within an
hour. The professionals who were involved are an enthusiastic bunch and
happy to share their knowledge with the students. These interactions then
extended to the field trip the next day, allowing the students to feel
comfortable engaging with the professionals and other attendees during the day.”
“It was so much fun,” said Reynolds student Rachel Phelps
who attended both the Mentoring Workshop and the Field Trip. (Rachel is pictured here with the other VCCS students - bottom row, center.) “I had no idea how
much fun education could be. I met a lot of people, many from William and Mary,
and I really got to know how the geology community works. The most important
thing for me was it made me decide what I want to do and where I want to go. I
know now I want to transfer to William and Mary and go in to environmental
science or geology – maybe even chemistry.”
Rachel graduated early from New Kent High School and is in
her first semester at Reynolds. Her friends came to Reynolds and told her about
their great experiences and she decided to come here too. She is already headed
on an Honors track, thanks to help from Professor Layou. “I never really
struggled with school, I understood math and chemistry . . . I didn’t enjoy
trying to remember all of those dates in History,” Rachel said. When she isn’t
working at her part-time job, studying, or going on her own field trips (she loves
the outdoors) Rachel is teaching herself calculus online.
No surprise a little cold rain didn’t keep Rachel away from
the weekend event. She has found her place with friends, students, academics
and professional, on the rocks.
