James S. Reichard

Jim Reichard collecting water samples on the Ogeechee River, Georgia

My teaching responsibilities at Georgia Southern include an introductory course in environmental geology, and two upper division courses in hydrogeology.  In all my courses I incorporate hands-on and field-based activities designed to promote higher orders of learning.  For geology majors in the BS program, I also mentor those students who select a hydrology-related problem for their senior research project.  For non-geology majors, I lead a trip each semester to a barrier island so that students get a firsthand view of how human interaction with the geologic environment can have unintended, and undesirable consequences.  This trip is also designed to give students an opportunity to really experience geology in the field.  Those of us who are geologists know that such fieldtrips can be a very memorable and meaningful learning experience.

In the classroom, my basic teaching philosophy is centered on the belief that most people are inherently interested in science.  Evidence for this is the widespread popularity of science programs on cable TV.  Unfortunately, this natural interest in science can easily evaporate in the classroom.  My approach is to emphasize that science is not just a bunch a facts, but rather a way of learning about the fascinating world that surrounds us.  Here I focus on having students understand concepts and processes as opposed to memorizing trivia and jargon.  Also critical is showing students that the course material is relevant to their own lives.  For this I provide everyday examples to demonstrate that we, as individuals and society as a whole, are intimately linked to geologic environment

In terms of scholarship, my interests lie in both hydrology and pedagogy.  With respect to hydrology, my dissertation research was on modeling the effects of pore pressure changes on groundwater flow systems, and on computing applications for aquifer tests.  Since coming to Georgia Southern, my attention has shifted towards doing applied hydrologic research on the southeastern coastal plain.  Here I'm interested in the relationship between groundwater discharge and the chemistry of surface waters.  In particular, I'm interested in how groundwater discharge can impact surface-water quality and aquatic ecosystems.  In 2007 I completed a multi-year investigation of excessive nutrient loading on a blackwater river.  Here we showed that the primary nutrient source was two separate groundwater contaminant plumes that originated from a poultry-processing plant.  More recently I have been investigating whether artesian springs and surface streams have been influenced by deep basement structures propagating through the post-Cretaceous sedimentary sequence.

In pedagogy, my interest has been in developing effective techniques for teaching geologic concepts and processes.  I have shared the results of this effort by means of journal publications, presentations at professional meetings, and an on-line paper.  Perhaps most significant has been the development of new environmental geology textbook, which began in 2004 with McGraw Hill Publishers.  The book was published in 2010 and incorporates many of the techniques and strategies that I have found effective in the classroom.

Reichard, J.S, Environmental Geology, 2010,  McGraw Hill Publishers, 544p.

Reichard, J.S. and Brown, C.M., 2009,  Detecting Groundwater Contamination of a River Using Baseflow Sampling, Hydrogeology Journal, v. 17, n. 3, p. 735-747:

Reichard, J.S.,  2006,  Quantifying Groundwater Baseflow and Improving Math Skills through a Stream-Discharge Exercise, Teaching Hydrogeology in the 21st Century, National Association of Geoscience Teachers,  available on-line at:
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/hydrogeo/activities/9924.html

Reichard, J.S.,  2002,  A Computer Program for use with Pace and Compass Exercises: Journal of Geoscience Education,v. 50, n. 5, p. 544-548.

Reichard, J.S,  1999,  Switching from a Traditional to a Computer-Based Format for Introductory Geoscience Lectures:  Journal of Geoscience Education,v. 47, n. 4, p. 325-330.

Reichard, J.S. and Leap, D.I.,  1998,  The Effects of Pore Pressure on the Conductivity of Fractured Aquifers:  Ground Water, v. 36, n. 3, p. 450-456.

Pittenger, R. and Reichard, J.S.,  1997,  Computer Determination of Aquifer Parameters using Slope-Matching:  Ground Water, v. 35, n. 3, p. 546-550.

Reichard, J.S.,  1996,  Teaching Stereo Viewing in the Classroom:  Journal of Geoscience Education,v. 44, n. 2, p. 129-133.

Recent Conference Presentations

Reichard, J.S., and Fitzner, A.,  2008,  Investigating the Origin and Possible Structural Control of Artesian Springs in the Southeastern Coastal Plain of Georgia.  Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, National Meeting, v. 40, n. 6, p. 87.

Reichard, J.S.,  2007,  Chemical Mixing Pattern in Scour Pools on the Coastal Plain in Georgia.  Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, Southeastern Section Meeting, v. 39, n. 2, p. 32.

Reichard, J.S.,  2005,  Mapping Groundwater Springs within Scour Pools in Coastal Rivers in Georgia.  Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, National Meeting, v. 37, n. 7, p. 140.

Reichard, J.S.,  2003,  Investigating the Relationship of Critical Sturgeon Habitat to Groundwater Springs in the Coastal Plain of Southeast Georgia.  Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, National Meeting, v. 35, n. 6, p. 199.

Reichard, J.S. and Brown, C.,  2002, Use of Water-Quality Data to Evaluate Stream-Aquifer Interaction in the Canoochee River, Georgia Ground Water spring conference, Jekyll Island, Georgia.