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Dr. Alan R. Berkowitz

Head of Education, Plant Ecologist | PhD, Cornell University

Expertise
education

Profile (pdf)

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Alan Berkowitz is a leader in defining and advancing ecological literacy. He develops innovative programs to help students and teachers understand and appreciate the complex interactions that govern the natural world and the ways that people depend on and influence ecosystems. Berkowitz also works to build a more diverse community of ecologists by engaging high school and undergraduate students from groups currently underrepresented in ecology in research experiences.

As the Education Team Leader for the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, Berkowitz built a close collaboration with the Baltimore City Public Schools to bring cutting-edge research and teaching strategies into the classroom. Most recently, his Integrating Chemistry and Earth Science project developed curricula for high school chemistry students and teachers in the district. Schools in the Hudson Valley and across the nation have the opportunity to partner with Cary to implement freely available curriculum materials and participate in teacher training workshops. These collaborations bring together teachers, education researchers, and scientists — all working to improve ecological literacy.

Berkowitz serves on the Ecological Society of America’s Four-Dimensional Ecology Education Committee, which is advancing a framework for undergraduate ecology education. He also co-leads the Undergraduate Field Experiences Research Network that is building a community of scientists, educators, and education researchers dedicated to exploring and sharing best practices for inclusive and effective teaching and learning in field settings.

Berkowitz directed Cary Institute’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates program and the Urban Water Innovation Network Undergraduate Research Program. The Baltimore and Mid-Hudson Young Environmental Scientist programs have provided high school students with early exposure to the joys and challenges of ecological field studies. Through these programs, he helped hundreds of students gain confidence and expertise in environmental science.

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Hess, RA, OA Erickson, RB Cole, JM Isaacs, S Alvarez-Clare, J Arnold, A Augustus-Wallace, et al. 2023. “Virtually the Same? Evaluating the Effectiveness of Remote Undergraduate Research Experiences”. CBE-LIFE SCIENCES EDUCATION 22 (2). doi:10.1187/cbe.22-01-0001.
Harris, CB, AW Oliveira, BLM Levy, Alan R. Berkowitz, and C Bowser. 2023. “The Eel Connection: Developing Urban adolescents’ Sense of Place through Outdoor Interactions With a Local Organism”. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION. doi:10.1080/00958964.2023.2216160.
Covitt, Beth A., Kristin L. Gunckel, Alan R. Berkowitz, William W. Woessner, and John Moore. 2023. “Employing a Groundwater Contamination Learning Experience to Build Proficiency in Computational Modeling for Socioscientific Literacy”. Journal of Science Education and Technology. Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1007/s10956-023-10062-z.
Gunckel, KL, BA Covitt, Alan R. Berkowitz, Bess Caplan, and JC Moore. 2022. “Computational Thinking for Using Models of Water Flow in Environmental Systems: Intertwining Three Dimensions in a Learning Progression”. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING. doi:10.1002/tea.21755.
Erickson, Olivia A., Rebecca B. Cole, Jared M. Isaacs, Silvia Alvarez-Clare, Jonathan Arnold, Allison Augustus-Wallace, Joseph C. Ayoob, et al. 2022. “‘How Do We Do This at a Distance?!’ A Descriptive Study of Remote Undergraduate Research Programs During COVID-19”. LSE 21 (1). American Society for Cell Biology (lse): ar1+. doi:10.1187/cbe.21-05-0125.
Grooms, Jonathon, Kevin Fleming, Alan R. Berkowitz, and Bess Caplan. 2021. “Exploring Modeling As a Context to Support Content Integration for Chemistry and Earth Science”. Journal of Chemical Education 98 (7). American Chemical Society (ACS): 2167-75. doi:10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00319.
Meixner, Thomas, Alan R. Berkowitz, Alisen E. Downey, Jose Pillich, Reese LeVea, Brianne K. Smith, Mark Chandler, et al. 2021. “Rapid Assessment and Long-Term Monitoring of Green Stormwater Infrastructure With Citizen Scientists”. Sustainability 13 (22). MDPI AG: 12520. doi:10.3390/su132212520.
O’Connell, Kari, Kelly L Hoke, Michael Giamellaro, Alan R. Berkowitz, and Janet Branchaw. 2021. “A Tool for Designing and Studying Student-Centered Undergraduate Field Experiences: The UFERN Model”. BioScience 72 (2). Oxford University Press (OUP): 189-200. doi:10.1093/biosci/biab112.
Carpenter, S. L., J. Kim, K. Nilsen, T. Irish, J. A. Bianchini, and Alan R. Berkowitz. (2025) 2020. “Secondary Science teachers’ Use of Discourse Moves to Work With Student Ideas in Classroom Discussions”. International Journal of Science Education 42 (15): 2513-33.
Klemow, Kenneth, Alan R. Berkowitz, C. Cid, and G. Middendorf. 2019. “Improving Ecological Education through a Four-Dimensional Framework”. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 17 (2): 71. doi:10.1002/fee.2013.
Esposito, Rhea M. M., Cornelia Harris, Alan R. Berkowitz, and Maribel Pregnall. 2019. “The Joys of Teaching Ecology in K–12 and Informal Settings”. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 17 (9). Wiley: 538-39. doi:10.1002/fee.2122.
Berkowitz, Alan R., Tobias Irish, and Cornelia Harris. 2016. “Data Explorations in Ecology: Secondary Students’ Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Towards Data”. In National Association for Research in Science Teaching Annual Conference. http://www.caryinstitute.org/reprints/Berkowitz_NARST_2016_DEEP_final.pdf.
Jordan, Rebecca C., Wesley R. Brooks, Jacqueline R. DeLisi, Steven A. Gray, and Alan R. Berkowitz. 2015. “Ecology Nature of Science: Shared Discussions and Practices Among Ecologists and High School Teachers”. Ecosphere 6 (11): art223. doi:10.1890/ES13-00386.1.
Berkowitz, Alan R., Tobias Irish, Cornelia Harris, Samantha Root, C.A. Brewer, Katherine Trudeau, and Angelita Alvarado-Santos. 2015. “Data Explorations in Ecology: Students’ Understanding of Variability and Use of Data in Environmental Citizenship”. In Association for Science Teacher Education Northeast Chapter Annual Meeting. http://www.caryinstitute.org/reprints/Berkowitz_ASTE_2015_DEEP_final.pdf.
Berkowitz, Alan R., Tobias Irish, Cornelia Harris, Samantha Root, C.A. Brewer, Katherine Trudeau, and Angelita Alvarado-Santos. 2015. “Data Explorations in Ecology: Students’ Understanding of Variability and Use of Data in Environmental Citizenship”. In National Association for Research in Science Teaching Annual Conference. http://www.caryinstitute.org/reprints/Berkowitz_NARST_2015_DEEP_final.pdf.
Harris, Cornelia, Alan R. Berkowitz, Bess Caplan, and Shelley Doster. 2015. “Hudson River Data Jam: Creatively Engaging Students With Large Data Sets”. In Ecological Society of America Annual Conference. http://www.caryinstitute.org/reprints/Harris_ESA_2015_DataJam_final.pdf.
Bianchini, Julie A., Nissa Yestness, Katherine J. Nilsen, Jiwon Kim, LaTisha M. Hammond, Stacy Carpenter, Tobias Irish, Sylvia D. Parker, and Alan R. Berkowitz. 2014. “Progression-Based Teaching Strategies in Environmental Science: Teachers’ Successes and Struggles in Implementation”. National Association for Research in Science Teaching. Pittsburgh, PA: National Association for Research in Science Teaching. http://www.pathwaysproject.kbs.msu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Bianchini-et-al.-2014.-Learning-Progression-Based-Teaching-Strategies-in-Environmental-Science.pdf.
McBride, B. B., C.A. Brewer, Alan R. Berkowitz, and W. T. Borrie. 2013. “Environmental Literacy, Ecological Literacy, Ecoliteracy: What Do We Mean and How Did We Get Here?”. Ecosphere 4 (5): art67. doi:10.1890/ES13-00075.1.
Harris, Cornelia, Alan R. Berkowitz, Jennifer Doherty, and Laurel Hartley. 2013. “Exploring biodiversity’s Big Ideas in Your School Yard”. Science Scope 36 (8). National Science Teachers Association: 20-27. http://learningcenter.nsta.org/files/ss1308_20.pdf.
Jordan, Rebecca C., Wesley R. Brooks, Steven A. Gray, Jacqueline R. DeLisi, and Alan R. Berkowitz. 2013. “Rising to the ‘broader impacts’ Challenge”. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 11 (5): 234-35. doi:10.1890/13.WB.013.

Projects