Graduate alum Dr. Christy Visaggi, senior lecturer at Georgia State University, has had an exceptionally good year. This year, she has been recognized by three major professional organizations for her innovative and inspiring teaching and mentoring in the Earth sciences. First, she received the Biggs Award for Earth Science teaching from the Geological Society of America’s Geosciences Education Division at the 2022 Annual Meeting in Denver CO. Second, at December’s meeting of the American Geophysical Union, she delivers the Dorothy LaLonde Stout Lecture in recognition of her significant contributions to Earth science education and public outreach. Lastly, Visaggi has just taken the reins as President of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers. It is hard to imagine a weightier triumvirate to endorse and honor one’s contributions to Earth science education!
Dr. Visaggi is a paleontologist who worked with Professor Linda Ivany here at Syracuse University before moving to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington for her PhD. Her dissertation advisor and citationist for the Biggs Award, Dr. Patricia Kelley, describes Visaggi as “a trailblazer in innovative teaching and a national leader in geoscience education.” Her student Megan Rich credits “Dr. V’s” compassion and creativity with having a life-changing impact on her, building her confidence immensely and inspiring her to foster similarly welcoming learning environments for others.
Experiential learning is a priority for Visaggi. Students in her classes all contribute to novel research projects, serve as co-authors on abstracts and papers, and present their work at professional conferences. In addition to her scholarship on pedagogy, Visaggi’s research integrates the fossil record and modern marine habitats to understand ecological interactions and their impacts on spatial and temporal paleocommunity dynamics. She also leverages the more recent fossil record for conservation paleobiology, providing a long-term perspective to evaluate anthropogenic impacts on coastal assemblages.
Congratulations Christy!