Larkspur Morton

Disciplines:
Outdoor and Experiential Education, Group Dynamics, Facilitation, and Leadership, Interpersonal Communication, Deep Ecology, Sustainability, Environmental and Social Justice, Critical Thinking, Place-based and Bioregional Education
Animal Behavior, Ecology, Evolution, General Biology, Physiology and Anatomy, Vertebrate Zoology, Physiological Psychology, Anthropology, Primatology, Ornithology

Education:
B.A. Biology and Psychology, Hamline University, St Paul, MN
Ph.D. Animal Behavior, University of California, Davis, CA
Two courses in Non-violent Communication, Bangor & Orono, ME
ACA Flatwater Canoe Instructor Training, VT

Certifications:
Wilderness First Responder
CPR

Selected Work History:
UCDavis, CA:  Graduate Teaching Assistant and Graduate Researcher in Peru

Colby College: Taught Animal Behavior, Vertebrate Zoology, Mammalian Anatomy and Physiology, Introductory Biology, Biodiversity, and Biology of Women
Organized workshops on engaging learners and improving teaching
Worked with students on a Gray Jay ecology and behavior project in the western mountains of Maine

Audubon Expedition Institute (for past 4 years @ Lesley University): taught on 12 bus semesters over the past seven years. Locations: Southwest desert, Sonora and Baja Mexico, California, Pacific Northwest, Maine, Atlantic Coast, and Hawaii

Lesley University:  In addition to above, advised 8 independent study students. 

Volunteer Assistant Coach, Camden High School Ultimate Frisbee

Hobbies:
Ultimate Frisbee, Yoga, Meditation, Gardening, Nutrition and Health, Sewing, Guitar, Singing, Backpacking, Hiking, X-ctry skiing, Playing

Educational Philosophy:

I believe that everyone is a learner and everyone is a teacher, and that learning is a never-ending process of life; it doesn’t stop at the classroom door.  My goals are to empower, encourage, challenge, and create confidence in my students. I hope to empower my students to embrace both the freedom and the responsibility for their own education. I work to create a supportive learning environment where assumptions, common knowledge, and personal beliefs can be examined and challenged, an environment where personal and academic growth are both nurtured.

As W.B.Yeats so eloquently put it, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”