This site is the creation of two Elmira College women's studies classes, built during six week terms in the spring of 2010 and 2011. Thirty-one students profiled women that have dedicated their personal and professional lives to helping the environment. The task was to present these women's stories and some related issues to the world via the web. Class members also were asked to partake in some recreational and pro-environmental activities ourselves. We've tried to give many of these environmentalists an opportunity to share their stories with you so that you can learn more about them, and about what you can do to better the environment. Protect Your Mother is part of The First Shift Project, a larger collection of websites about women and work, all created by Diane Maluso's women's studies students.

 

Building this site...

Students worked in groups and first learned the skills necessary to conduct field interviews. They made contact with various women working to better the environment and arranged interviews, using digital photography and videography to record interviews. The interviews took place in upstate New York, New Jersey, California, Ontario, and The College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine. Interviews were in person, via email, via iChat, and there were more than a few follow-up sessions using Skype. Then came the fun part; students learned how to create websites on Apple computers using Dreamweaver, Photoshop, MS Word, iMovie, iPhoto, iDVD, Quicktime, Firefox, Google Sites, Picnic, Youtube, and whatever else they could get their hands on. It was an experience that I am sure they will all never forget; although some may wish to forget this drawn-out experience. The sites from the 2010 class were built with Dreamweaver and then uploaded to a college web server. In 2011 we worked in Google Sites. There are pros and cons of each method related to ease of use, site management tools, customization options, ease of collaboration, amount of technological savvy needed to create a good site, and more, and there is no simple answer as to which method is better. An educator will need to consider how each method meets the various learning objectives for her class and should probably work with both methods herself before investing a great deal of class time in building sites.

 

Getting Our Daily Exercise...

Of course sitting behind a computer for three hours a day, four days a week was not the best way to enjoy the beautiful spring weather in Elmira, NY. Students were asked to go out into the community and participate in numerous forms of environmental activism. Some members of the class built homes with Habitat for Humanity, participated in campus cleanups and made an effort to improve the recycling at Elmira College. These opportunities allowed us to gain a sense of understanding for the environment as well as enhance relationships with classmates. Each class member participated in two activities of their choosing, some familiar, some not; and most students were able to stretch their comfort by trying the unfamiliar. These activities included hiking the Treman Gorge, geocaching and recycling.

 

"This class allowed me to take part in experiences I wouldn’t normally have enjoyed. We were given the opportunity to contribute to the environment by spreading awareness."

"I enjoyed learning to use and develop a website and I think it will be a very strong useful skill. It was also nice to be able to get out in the environment and be away from the classroom for a bit."

"Www.women helped me learn more about technology while also learning about women dedicated to the environment. It was nice to see a woman who has fulfilled her life and also get a break from writing papers!! "☺

"This class taught me how to create a website and how to use Mac computers. It also allowed me to participate in activities I wouldn’t usually do such as gorge hikes and geocaching. It was cool learning about the Ecovillage and actually being able to visit."

"This class helped me learn more about working with computers, especially Macs. I enjoyed learning how to make websites and not having to write papers! I also had fun times going out into the environment and doing things I never would have done on my own"

"Www.women allowed me to learn about creating websites and it got me out and into the environment. I really enjoyed being a part of this class and wish more of my classes were this enjoyable"

"Being a member of this taught me much more than how to build a website. I was able to re-visit my love for hiking when we went to the Treman trails in Ithaca. More than that though, I was able to learn and become very involved in Habitat for Humanity. All in all, this was more of an enjoyable life experience for me than dreaded class work."

"Maluso’s voice is as sweet as honey and sings a sweet melody to my ears as she lovingly instructs us in this class. She is a true inspiration."  [From Maluso: I'm still laughing over this one!]

"So, I’m pretty tech savvy, but this class was ridiculous. It was very difficult and stressful, but now that it is over, I couldn’t feel more accomplished. Looking back, it also was a lot of fun. This class was great and I learned a lot. I wish I could have more classes like this."

"Inevitably, there is always something to be learned regardless of the course a student is enrolled in. Sometimes however, the lessons learned are not what an individual expects. www.women provided the perfect opportunity to experience an occurrence of this exact nature. For the opportunity to learn a new skill, I entered the class with excitement. Little did I know that I would become an “expert” on the skill I was so ecstatic about. Although I may not know everything about the Dreamweaver program, I do know about the nightmares caused when using a template embedded with bad code. And through this experience I learned a very important and unexpected thing, “Regardless, of how pretty and perfect a template may appear, One should never, EVER dream about attempting to use it if the code is corrupt. It will just not work!” There exist few classes where one can truly lose themselves in their course work, find themselves crying out in frustration and cheering in excitement the next moment, while discovering local hidden treasures."

Thanks, Renaldo!