School Notes: School of the Environment
May/June 2018

New MEM curriculum promotes depth and breadth

F&ES this year is launching a new curriculum for one of its core academic programs, the master of environmental management (MEM) degree, which places more emphasis on subject specialization while also building common foundational skills and affording flexibility. Beginning in the 2018–19 academic year, MEM students will be required to select from one of eight academic specializations. While the format provides a clear road map to complete a degree in one of these subject areas, students can still devote more than half their academic load to classes outside their chosen specialization. “This curriculum will provide a new level of depth in the student’s chosen area while still offering the flexibility that we’re known for in our course programming,” said Julie Zimmerman, professor of green engineering and senior associate dean of academic affairs at F&ES. All incoming MEM students will also be required to take a series of common courses that provide a shared foundation of knowledge and interdisciplinary perspectives that are essential for any environmental professional.

Grant promotes interdisciplinary teaching and research

A newly funded grant opportunity will promote collaborations for environmental teaching and research across Yale University. The Leitner Awards for Uncommon Environmental Collaboration will aim to foster new research and teaching in six areas identified by the F&ES strategic plan: climate change, urban systems and the environment, environmental communications, environmental data science, environmental justice and environmental health, and interdisciplinary team teaching. The new grants were made possible by a generous gift from James Leitner ’75, a past recipient of the Yale Medal for his outstanding service to the Association of Yale Alumni, whose volunteer service to Yale has extended across many disciplines. “The big global challenges that we’re facing don’t limit themselves to sectors or silos—they’re unbounded and unconstrained,” said Leitner. “So I think we need approaches to solutions that are also unbounded and unconstrained.”