Valparaiso University - Geography Program

Professor Longan, who served as a Marshal for yesterday's commencement ceremony, and two of our Environmental Science and Geography majors appeared in the NWI Times newspaper today. They were taking a selfie while getting lined in the Hilltop Gym before the ceremony.

PHOTOS: See milestone day for Valparaiso University graduates FREE TO READ: See photos from a milestone day for Valparaiso University graduates as they claimed diplomas.

Congratulations to all of our Geography and Environmental Science students who graduated today! We can't wait to see what you do with everything that you learned here at Valpo!

Field experiences are an integral part of many of Valpo's geography classes. Last Sunday Professor Longan's GEO321 Urban and Regional Planning class explored Chicago via the South Shore and the "L". The course includes a unit on planning in Chicago and the field experience allowed students to see some of the neighborhoods and places they have been learning about. The students visited Pilsen, Chinatown, and Printer's Row, and the Loop with a quick stop at Millennium Park before getting on the train to go home.

Last Friday's Moellering Academic Panel on Spatial Sciences (MAPS) celebrated the launch of our new Bachelor of Science in Geospatial Science degree and brought students, faculty, alumni, and members of the community together to learn about the state of art in the field from a panel of esteemed experts. Thank you to the Christopher Center Library - Valparaiso University staff who helped to organize the event and who curated a remarkable display of maps from the Moellering Collection. We would also like to thank our panelists for sharing their expertise including: Michael Goodchild, Professor Emeritus, UC Santa Barbara; Marianne Cardwell, Geographic Information Officer, State of Indiana; Stephen Aldrich, Deputy Geographic Information Officer, State of Indiana, Ashley Poling: Program Manager at T-Kartor and VU Alumna; and Gang Shao, Associate Professor of Data Science, Purdue University. Most importantly we are grateful for the generosity of Valpo alum Hal Moellering who made the event possible and who has been a tireless supporter of Geography at Valparaiso University.

It's Valpo Day! 🤎💛

On this giving day, the Department of Geography, Meteorology, and Environmental Science at VU asks you to kindly consider donating to the the GEO gift fund, the Bart J. Wolf Experiential Learning Fund , or to the MET gift fund.

The GEO Gift Fund supports the purchase of needed equipment to facilitate experiential learning experiences for Valpo's geography and environmental science students. Specifically, these funds help offset the cost of field trips, van up keep, travel to conferences, and additional instrumentation.

If you would like to contribute, please use the link below. Under "Choose a designation" select "Other" and a "Other Designation" box will appear where you can type "GEO gift fund", "Bart Wolf Fund", or "MET gift fund".

https://giveto.valpo.edu/register/ValpoDay2026_Giving?sys:gift:fund=ded3beac-9dd8-a629-6a3e-75cad9219321&sys:gift:appeal=869d6e54-6216-4103-bcdb-0b5ae956d0c3&utm_source=adv&utm_medium=web&utm_content=portal&utm_campaign=valpoday&utm_term=mainbutton

We thank you for your generosity and dedication to building the next generation of VU geoscientists!

Make Your 2026 Valpo Day Gift