Mary Margaret Minnis, Ph.D.

Department of Chemistry and Physical Sciences  
Pace University
  Pleasantville, New York

MMinnis@Pace.edu

Voice:  914-773-3857         Fax:  914-989-8644

 

Ph.D. Environmental Science, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
M.S. Environmental Science, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
B.S. Chemistry, Marywood University

Environmental Science and the Human Community

GIS, Watershed Management, Onsite and Municipal Wastewater Treatment, Stream Evaluation, Wetland Protection, Solid Waste Management, Environmental Assessment, Environmental Impact Statement Analysis and Preparation, Environmental Chemistry, Online Science Education

 

Primary Interest Areas:
My service on the Darien, Connecticut Environmental Protection Commission influenced my concept on how an environmental education can be used to serve the needs of a community to improve the environment.  One in-depth study resulted in a textbook on onsite wastewater treatment systems and how they can address community sanitation needs and recycle water in an efficient and environmentally-sensitive manner.

I have used and taught GIS to address community issues in watershed protection,  water quality mapping, open space analysis, historic preservation, 3-D analysis of watershed boundaries and air quality analysis.  I have also developed  new methods and techniques to use GIS and have created a website of over 40 GIS instructional videos.

I have trained and led volunteer groups to monitor streams using the Izaak Walton League of America’s Save Our Streams program, training participants to identify benthic macroinvertebrates and perform field-based chemical analysis of the waters.

Prior to teaching at Pace, my research was devoted to using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive x-ray analysis to analyze particulates, concentrating on developing a signature to identify the fly ash from coal-fired power plants.

Courses Taught
Environmental Assessment
Geographic Information Systems
Waste Management
Environmental Science
Consumer Chemistry (online, with at-home labs)
Chemistry of Food and Cooking
Environmental Communications

Recent Presentations:
“Creating a GIS Hub at Pace University ” 24th Annual Northeast ArcUsers Group Conference, Nashua, NH, October 2009.

“Synchronizing Photos to Tracklog Points” NEARC Spring 2009 Meeting, Northampton, MA, May 12, 2009.                 

More Presentations

Textbook:
Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems.  M.M. Minnis, B.D. Burks.  Hogarth House, Ltd. 1994.

Publications & Links to online publications or abstracts.

Graduate Student Theses
This link gives the titles and a description of each of the graduate student theses I have mentored at Pace University.  

Volunteer Project
Since 1986, I have been the principal contact for US Peace Corps volunteers to obtain free books through Darien Book Aid.  This all-volunteer organization serves over 400 PCVs in all the countries that the Peace Corps operates.  The organization has close ties to the environmental volunteers who work to instill ideas of sustainability in the developing world.