Coos Bay, OR – Southwestern Oregon Community College’s popular Geology Lecture Series concludes for the 2021-22 academic year with a talk by Dr. Ron Metzger, Professor of Earth Sciences at Southwestern with “The Last Lecture? Oribatid Mites, Conodonts and Musings from Nearly Four Decades in the College Classroom”.
The talk will take place on Saturday, May 21, 2022 at 7:00 pm in the Hales Center for the Performing Arts on the Coos Bay campus (1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay) and also streamed live via Livestream at the College website (https://livestream.com/swocc/geology2021-22).
Ron Metzger earned a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from St. Lawrence University, and master’s and doctorate degrees in paleontology from the University of Iowa. He has been a member of the Southwestern Oregon Community College faculty since the fall of 1996 and will officially retire in June. He is a member of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers having served in a variety of leadership roles for the Pacific Northwest Section including president. He has been a workshop leader for Teachers on the Leading Edge and for On The Cutting Edge: NAGT Early Career Geoscience Faculty Workshop.
While at Southwestern he served as Geology Club Advisor, Faculty Senate Chair, and as faculty ex-officio on the College Foundation Board. Over the years he has given community outreach talks to numerous groups. One of Metzger’s most significant local contributions has been hosting the geology lecture series, bringing prominent scientists to the College to present lectures on cutting edge topics to students and community for over two decades. Ron also serves on the Jefferson Public Radio Foundation Board and recently retired from the board of the Oregon Coast Music Festival after 20 years of service.
In addition to our speaker, representatives of the Southwestern Foundation, South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve, University of Oregon’s Charleston Marine Life Center, Shoreline Education for Awareness, and Surfrider Foundation will be present in the Hales Center lobby starting at 6:30 pm to share information regarding their organizations. The representatives will also be available after the lecture.
Lecture Series Sponsors include DB Western, Southwestern Foundation, The Mill Casino & Resort, Ocean Discovery Lecture Series, and the American Geophysical Union. For additional information contact Ron Metzger at rmetzger@socc.edu or 541-888-7216.
