SUNY Online Teaching Ambassador 2021: Morrisville – Jessica Sarauer

Jessica Sarauer, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of Environmental and Renewable Resources at SUNY Morrisville.  She teaches various environmental science courses in person (lecture and lab-based) and online to undergraduate students.  Jessica brought her natural resources knowledge to SUNY Morrisville in 2018 and started teaching online courses in 2019. 

I started teaching online because I wanted to offer a natural science general education course option to students who might not be able to attend classes at a specific time and location, which can be a barrier to students succeeding in college or taking the risk of returning to college.  I think flexibility, as well as structure, are the keys to online learning.  I strive to present a well-organized course that is easy for students to navigate.  My favorite part about the online classroom is seeing the students interact, even if it is over a discussion board.  Having the ability to think through their responses and not be put on the spot allows more students to share their ideas and research what they want to say. I think I have learned much more about my students in the online setting because of this!

I find online teaching to be rewarding. I can interact with many more students with diverse backgrounds. Instead of only having mostly traditional college students, my classes now have non-traditional students from across the state (and even some in other states) who have added their unique life experiences to the classroom.

I look forward to continuing to work with online learners in the future.