I am the full-time Geology instructor at College of Marin, teaching a range of courses such as Physical Geology (GEOL 120), Environmental Geology (GEOL 103), Oceanography (GEOL 109), and California Geology (GEOL 114). These courses are designed with an emphasis on the local geology, so that students can gain a better understanding of how the land that they see every day came to be. I also strive in all of these courses to explain how climate change—the single most important scientific topic—will affect virtually every aspect of our natural world.
You can find my writings on climate change, the importance of teaching evolution in public schools, and the nature of science in publications such as New Scientist, the Huffington Post, EARTH magazine, and the Christian Science Monitor, as well as interviews in Mother Jones, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal.
Online Learning Courses
GEOL 120: Physical Geology: This is a survey course of all things geologic, starting with rocks and minerals, then geologic hazards such as earthquakes, volcanoes, environmental pollution, and climate change.
Tips for Success in my Online Classes:
My online classes are structured in weekly segments—week two focuses minerals, week three on igneous rocks, for example. In each weekly segment there will be a video lecture, a discussion board for you to answer or post questions, and a brief quiz. Each week’s work will be due by midnight Sundays. The syllabus contains a much more detailed description of how to succeed in this course.
Additional information
Email is the best way to reach me: snewton@marin.edu.
Office hours and current courses
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