Research Experience Inspires Innovative Lesson Plans

Senior Fellows come together outside of Knowles!

Senior Fellow Dr. Lauren Kline was selected to participate in the 2025 BIORETS Research Experience Program for Teachers, co-led by Knowles Senior Fellow Rebecca Van Tassell at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. This summer professional learning experience took place at Cary’s 2,000-acre research campus in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Through six weeks of intensive ecology instruction and fieldwork, the Cary BIORETS program helps teachers strengthen their research skills—from study design and implementation to data analysis. It also supports participants in translating those experiences into engaging classroom materials that enhance student learning.

Over the summer, Dr. Kline worked on a research team investigating the legacy effects of spongy moth caterpillar defoliation on forest structure and productivity. The team was guided by Cary forest ecologists Evan Gora, Ian McGregor, and Vanessa Rubio. Dr. Kline also participated in curriculum-development workshops with the nine other program participants, led by Van Tassell and her collaborators at Cary.

Along with the rest of the BIORETS cohort, Dr. Kline presented her scientific findings and curriculum innovations during a research symposium on August 8, 2025. Throughout the coming school year, she will continue collaborating with BIORETS program leaders and her cohort to refine, implement, and evaluate her new lesson plans.