Missouri Geography Alliance

Dr. Murphy is the former Co-Coordinator and Principal Investigator for the Missouri Geography Alliance. The Alliance has traditionally been funded through grants by the National Geographic Society and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The purpose of the Alliance is to help teacher consultants develop the content knowledge on which to base the preparation of lessons that integrate geography into the curriculum.

The Alliance does this by providing Teacher Consultants (TC) with rich experience and accurate content on which to base lessons. The TCs are responsible for sharing this knowledge with other teachers in their schools. The Alliance has prepared more than 250 TC's throughout Missouri in geography awareness.

Currently Dr. Murphy is a member of the International Geography Union and serves on the Board of Directors for the Commission on Geoparks (see the link www.igu-cog.org and the picture below).

Dr. Johan Reinhard	Dr. Alton C. Byers

Twenty-three teachers were given the opportunity to travel to West Virginia in order to utilize the West Virginia mountains as a living laboratory for the study of the physical and social sciences in geography. A benefit of this experience was meeting National Geographic Explorers. Two of these explorers were Dr. Johan Reinhard (discoverer of the Ice Maiden in Peru) and Dr. Alton C. Byers (Director of the Spruce Knob Mountain Center).

The Mountain Institute

Teachers attending The Mountain Institute

Ms. Judy Ware and Dr. Carole Murphy

The Missouri Geography Alliance in partnership with the St. Louis Post Dispatch sponsored the 2001 Teacher River Barge Cruise. Rivers provide invaluable resources and exist within a larger system called watersheds. For rivers to be available to everyone, we need to use rivers in a way that does not significantly diminish the quality or quantity of their waters. Saving rivers means maintaining the quality of river systems, as well as the quality of all water within watersheds. Decisions concerning use, regulation, and conservation of rivers require collaborative efforts. Effective collaboration requires that we understand issues from perspectives other than our own. Geography offers that perspective through the Missouri Geography Alliance.

Teachers participating in "Discovering Missouri Rivers"

Center of Watershed Protection
Friends of the River
American Rivers

Quebec, Canada

The Missouri Geography Alliance in partnership with National Geographic sponsored a two week study of French Canada. Twenty-five teachers participated in the experience. Teachers investigated the Missouri/Canada French connection and the implications of this connection.

Teachers participating in the study of French Canada