Oregon Outside Faculty and FIG Assistant

Photo of College Connections for Oregon Outside, Dave Blackwell.
FIG College Connections Faculty: Dave Blackwell - Department of Earth Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences

Dave Blackwell is a Senior Instructor at the UO in the Department of Geological Sciences. He is the adviser for the Geology Club and Willamette Valley Student Chapter of American Association of Petroleum Geology. He has taught at UO for over twenty years. Dave has also taught at Western Washington University, Whitman College, Oregon State University, University of Pittsburgh, Lane Community College, and Northwest Christian College.  Academically, he is interested in West Coast tectonics and structure with an emphasis on the Pacific Northwest. 

He enjoys the geology and history of the National Parks and Monuments and visits them whenever possible. He is passionate about teaching geology and natural history at all levels of instruction from Elementary Public School through University. Outside of academics, Dave is interested in hiking, biking, gardening, listening to music, and attending music venues. He is married with three grown children (older son and set of boy/girl twins). Dave grew up in the Midwest. He was born in Springfield, Illinois and lived in the Illinois/Indiana region until the late 1970’s. He moved to the Pacific Northwest in the late 1970’s and attended graduate school at Western Washington University and University of Oregon. 

If you have any questions about the FIG or just want to introduce yourself, please send Dave an email at blackwel@uoregon.edu.

 

 
female student portrait
FIG Assistant: Nicole Witters

Hello incoming students!

My name is Nicole Witters, and I will be the First Year Program Assistant of Oregon Outside for your first-year as a student at the University of Oregon! This year, “Oregon Outside” combines the content of two interrelated science-based courses. Professor Dave Blackwell, who leads Oregon Outside FYP, teaches one of the courses, GEOL 203: History of Life , which consists of the formation of Earth’s crust and atmosphere, geologic time, fossilization, and the evolution from single-celled organisms, to dinosaurs, to hominids present today. The second class, ANTH 171: Introduction to Monkeys and Apes examines our closest relatives, primates!

This class is lead by another professor here at the UO. In Oregon outside, you will critically examine the overlap of ecosystems from the beginning of our Earth’s geologic formation to primates such as monkeys and apes to better understand the ways life on Earth coexists. In the FYP College Connections course, Professor Blackwell and I will facilitate and lead the class in understanding these concepts by intertwining them through discussions, light lectures, study periods, and field trips! The main purpose of this FYP is for our first-year students to gain a strong sense of community with their peers, their FYP
assistant (me), as well as their CC Professor in hopes of broadening your perspectives and accessibility to resources.

To introduce myself as your FYP Assistant (FA) the pronouns I identify with are She, Her, and Hers. I grew up in Northern California, and am a Junior here at UO. I’m majoring in Family and Human Services with hopes of minoring in Environmental studies. I have been a part of the First-Year Program since I was a Freshman. Some other things I love are hiking, camping, swimming, watching Netflix, and reading.

When I was a freshman, I joined this very FYP, “Oregon Outside” and was blown away by the program’s ability to make my transition into college easy and fun. A year later, I became an FYP Assistant simply because of how many incredible experiences I received from the FYP program. The amazing College Connections professor, David Blackwell is an experienced and compassionate professor who takes pride in the long-lasting relationships he creates with his
students. From my personal FYP experience, Professor Blackwell’s classes stay interesting and are well worth your time. He takes the whole class on field trips (one overnight trip to the Oregon Coast) and always makes the trip an unforgettable adventure.

I am so thrilled to be a part of this FYP as a second-year assistant this fall, and I look forward to meeting you all! Right off the bat, I want to share that as an FYP Assistant (FA), I am here for my students as a sort-of “mentor.” Since I am a student myself, I do not want to confuse y’all for I am not equal in your professors’ or instructors’ authority. I am here for my students to be someone to talk to, ask questions about academics or social life on campus, or to refer you to any resources that you might need. I hope your first-year transition into the University of Oregon to be as successful as possible with the FYP program.

One last thing! If you have registered for Oregon Outside, PLEASE send me an email with your name, your pronouns (this is likely a new concept for a lot of you, so don’t worry), where you’re from, and a little bit about yourself. That way, I can get to know you all a little bit before you arrive. Cheers!

Email: nwitters@uoregon.edu