Maryville College

Natural Sciences at Maryville College

What interests you? Whether your interest lies with the understanding of the function of a molecule or gene or you are curious about the function of complex ecological communities, the program and faculty expertise in the Division of Natural Sciences at Maryville College is structured to give you the tools you need for success in whatever career you choose.

The program at Maryville College is also designed to give the student intellectual training and hands-on experience in modern science topics. Too often, students lose sight of the fact that science is a creative process. We encourage students not to just think or talk about science, but to actually go out and do it.

Courses, internships, seminars and the senior study program are all designed to put more than knowledge about science, but science itself, in the hands of our students. Through these programs, our students understand the value of exploration and problem solving as being skills that extend well beyond the laboratory. As faculty, our purpose is to help you think about the questions that fascinate you, and then to equip you with the knowledge and resources to find the answers.

Dr. Ben Cash, associate professor of biology and division chair for the natural sciences, is the lead researcher for the reptile survey in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as part of the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI). Dr. Cash has had several MC students working with himin the past, four of whom are current graduate students in ecology/zoology programs.

Additional projects that are currently underway include a study on salamander distribution in the Cherokee National Forest and long-term research involving anuran species in the east Tennessee region and in the sub-arctic of Canada. All of these projects involve students.

Natural Sciences at MC

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