RECLAM4940Reclamation Project Management

Lecture: MWF12-12:52

Location: Russell 127

Course Instructor: Dr. Yari Johnson

Office Location: 316 Pioneer Tower

Phone: 608.342.7332

Email address: (email is the best/quickest way to contact me)

Office Hours:MWF 1-2 pm, T 11:15-12:15 pm, & F 10-11 pm (other times by appointment)

Course Description: Project management concepts are applied to environmentaland conservation-related issues and activities. Conceptsinclude definitions, role of project manager, project life cycle,project control cycles, project management tools, projectteam and organizational factors, and plan implementation.Leadership, team building and communication skills areemphasized. Service learning projects, written reports, andpresentations.

Prerequisite:junior standing or consent ofinstructor.

Textbooks:
1. Project Planning and Management for Ecological Restoration by John Rieger, John Stanley, and Ray Traynor

2. Additional readings assigned from other selected sources.

Student Learning Outcomes: After successfully completing Reclamation Project Management, the student should be able to (1) describe land management and reclamation/restoration activities and outcomes and explain their importance to a wide range of audiences; (2) characterize and apply interdisciplinary knowledge, skills, and ethics necessary to restore and manage cultural and natural landscapes; (3) apply site analyses techniques to predict and assess difficulties and challenges unique to a given reclamation/restoration site; (4) compare and evaluate the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders such as agencies, groups, and organizations engaged in land management and reclamation/restoration; (5) apply the skills to plan, design and construct a reclamation/restoration project.; (6) analyze and evaluate the reclamation/restoration results and the efficacy of methods and materials used in reclamation project management; and (7) demonstrate knowledge and perform administrative tasks of reclamation project management.

Course Evaluation and Grading

Assignment/Test / Points
Weekly Reports / 150
Summaries / 100
Knollwood Project / 100
Mine Recl Project / 150
Stormwater Project / 125
Wetland Project / 100
Madison Field Trip / 25
Total / 750
/ Grade / Percentage / GPA
A / 93.0-100.0 / 4.0
A- / 90.0-92.9 / 3.7
B+ / 87.0-89.9 / 3.3
B / 83.0-86.9 / 3.0
B- / 80.0-82.9 / 2.7
C+ / 77.0-79.9 / 2.3
C / 73.0-76.9 / 2.0
C- / 70.0-72.9 / 1.7
D+ / 67.0-69.9 / 1.3
D / 60.0-66.9 / 1.0
F / <60.0 / 0.0

Class Participation:Attendance in each class is required per UW-Platteville academic policy. Absences for attending university activities or events will be excused with written permission provided to me at least one week before being absent.

Term Projects: There are four term projects for this course. You will work together on a team with three classmates on each project. Each team member will get a chance to be the project manager and will thus provide leadership, direction, and ultimately be responsible for the project’s completion. Project due dates and deliverables will be discussed in class. Both the Knollwood and Stormwater Projects are service learning activities. Results of your team’s Stormwater Project will be presented at the PACCE Poster Engagement Day.

Weekly Reports: You will submit a weekly report due to your project manager by 5 pm on Friday (unless PM requests an earlier time) each week. Your report can consist of a short email detailing how much time you have spent on your assigned tasks, your accomplishments/progress, and any issues that the PM needs to respond to or should be aware of. Project managers will then compile a summary of their teams’ progress which will then be submitted to the supervisor (Dr. Johnson, founder and owner of Driftless Environmental Consulting Services) by 11:59 pm each Friday. Summaries need to detail hours by each team member.

Reading Summaries: Each team will do different reading summaries which will be presented to the class. Summaries will cover one “Part” of our textbook. These summaries will help the class achieve a better understanding of the reading material.

Policy Regarding Late Assignments:I am trying to create a real-life environment in this class. In real life, some deadlines are set in stone while others are negotiable. Each team will have to submit a timeline for completing projects. Weekly progress reports will ensure that any deadline issues are addressed before they become an issue. Failure to meet firm deadlines could result in students beingfired. Here is some advice for project managers:

Getting Fired: Failure to complete tasks, work as a team, and follow directions from your project manager or the supervisor will result in you being “fired.” If you are fired, you must complete the project on your own. You will receive points for your work submitted.

Field Trip: We will have one trip to Madison. This will most likely be on a Friday. Attendance is mandatory. However, an alternative assignment can be arranged with the supervisor in advance.

Email: You are welcome to email your questions to me. There are, however, some caveats associated with email that you must consider. 1) Do not expect an immediate response to your questions. A reasonable response time to emailed questions is 24 h. 2) Questions emailed on weekends may not receive a response until the work-week begins. 3) The instructor reserves the right to answer emailed questions during the class period for the benefit of all students. 4) Some questions are far too challenging to answer by email and you may be asked to visit me in person.

Statement on the Americans with Disabilities Act:

If you need an accommodation due to a disability, please make an appointment to see me during my office hours. A VISA from Services for Students with Disabilities authorizing your accommodations will be needed. Services for Students with Disabilities Office located at 115 Warner Hall, Platteville, WI 53818 (phone: 608-342-1818).

Military/Veterans:

Veterans and Reserve duty military personnel with special circumstances are welcome and encouraged to communicate these, in advance if possible, to the instructor prior to, or after class or during an office visit.

Accommodation of religious beliefs:

(1)A student shall be permitted to make up an examination or other academic requirement at another time or by an alternative method, without any prejudicial effect, where:

(a) There is a scheduling conflict between the student's sincerely held religious beliefs and taking the examination or meeting the academic requirements; and

(b) The student has notified the instructor, within the first 3 weeks of the beginning of classes (within the first week of summer session and short courses), of the specific days or dates on which he or she will request relief from an examination or academic requirement.

(2)Instructors may schedule a make-up examination or other academic requirement before or after the regularly scheduled examination or other academic requirement.

(3)Instructors shall accept, at face value, the sincerity of students' religious beliefs.

(4)Student notification of instructors and requests for relief shall be kept confidential.

Academic Misconduct:

Academic dishonesty and misconduct are not tolerated. Refer to Chapter 14 of the Student Conduct Code for more information.

I want all students to succeed in my class. It has been well-documented that multitasking diminishes student learning (for some examples see Therefore, I discourage using laptops/tablets for note-taking andI reserve the right to rescind electronic note-taking privileges if students abuse this right. Cell phones need to be turned off or put on vibrateduring class. No texting, web surfacing, etc… unless it is directly related to a class activity as dictated by the instructor. This is a zero tolerance policy.