Rory McFadden

Science Education Resource Center (SERC)

Carleton College

I am a Science Education Associate at SERC. Prior to joining SERC, I was an assistant professor at Gustavus Adolphus College where I taught courses and led undergraduate research projects in structural geology, tectonics, and geoscience education.

As a Science Education Associate, I design, conduct, collaborate on, and/or consult with projects and organizations that support effective practices in science education. I lead or support professional development events (e.g., workshops, webinars) and collaborate with project evaluators and research teams to design and conduct studies of program outcomes. I also develop ideas, build partnerships, and write grant proposals for new projects with SERC colleagues and other collaborators.

I am currently the president of NAGT and I have served on the Executive Committee since 2022. I also was the inaugural chair of the NAGT webinar planning committee from 2019-2022. 

Webinar Leader, Workshop Leader, Website Contributor, Reviewer

Website Content Contributions

Activities (2), Course (1), Conference Presentations (8), Other Contribution (1)

Activities (2)

Assesing the angle of subduction using GeoMapApp part of Structural Geology and Tectonics:Structure, Geophysics, and Tectonics 2012:Activities
This activity has students determine the angle of subduction using GeoMapApp. Students use datasets available within GeoMapApp to examine the influence of the age of oceanic lithosphere and convergence rate on the ...

On the Cutting Edge Exemplary Collection This activity is part of the On the Cutting Edge Exemplary Teaching Activities collection.
Learn more about this review process.

Reading and responding to geological journal articles part of Structural Geology and Tectonics:Structure, Geophysics, and Tectonics 2012:Activities
This a semester long activity for students in a plate tectonics course will be read one (or two) geological journal articles every other week on the major topics covered in the course. Students will submit reading ...

Course (1)

Plate Tectonics part of Structural Geology and Tectonics:Structure, Geophysics, and Tectonics 2012:Courses
A systematic treatment of the geology and geophysics of plate tectonics, based on present knowledge of the structure and physical properties of the Earth's interior. Included are present kinematics of plate ...

Conference Presentations (8)

The Math Your Earth Science Majors Need: Co-curricular Math and Statistics modules for Earth science majors courses part of Earth Educators Rendezvous:Rendezvous 2024:Program:Poster Sessions:Monday Poster Session
Quantitative skills are critical in Earth science and students need sustained and distributed practice to strengthen their skills. Applying quantitative approaches to Earth science questions enhances students' ...

Other Contribution (1)

Thursday A: Professional Development: Faculty, graduate students and teachers part of Earth Educators Rendezvous:Previous Rendezvous:Rendezvous 2018:Program:Oral Sessions:Thursday A
Skip to Main ContentSkip to Navigation Login Earth Educators' RendezvousLawrence, KS, July 16-20, 2018 View the Program | Search the Program ...

Communities

Member of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers
North Central Section
On the Cutting Edge Activity Reviewer
49 activities reviewed
Earth Educators Rendezvous 2024
July 2024 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2023
July 2023 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2022
July 2022 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2020
July 2020 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2018
July 2018 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2017
July 2017 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2016
July 2016 Teaching Geoscience with MATLAB Interest Group
NAGT All
CE National Geoscience Teaching Practices Survey Research Team
Earth Center ATE
EER 2020 Activity Reviewers
ASCN Member
Math You Need - Majors Advisory Committee
NC-FEW Advisory Board
NC-FEW 2025 conference participants
Integrate/GETSI 2023 Survey
GeoPRISMS Interest Community
GETSI Community
EER 2022 Activity Reviewers
MARGINS Teaching Materials Interest Group
Teaching Computation Interest Group
Math you Need Community
NAGT Webinar Series Interest
TIDeS Earth Science
TIDeS Materials Development
TIDeS Physical Science
Teach the Earth
Teaching Geoscience Online

Workshop Leader (4 workshops)

Teaching Online Introductory Geoscience Labs
July 2020Math you Need - Majors June 2023 Workshop Participants
GSA 2023 Mental Health in the Geosciences

Workshop Participant (35 workshops)

EER 2020 Teaching Online
July 2020 Teaching Computation in the Sciences Using MATLAB Workshop 2016
October 2016 Incorporating Thinking about the Earth across disciplines
July 2016

Webinar Leader

Studying Atmospheric Processes with Airborne Data
September 2022

Webinar Participant (21 webinars)

Fulfilling the Land-Grant Mission in a Modern Context: Ensuring Equitable Education via Cooperative Extension
January 2024 Compass: Discoverability, DEI, and Accessibility
October 2022 Community Efforts to Broaden Conference Participation in the Geosciences
September 2022