Biology Alum Brings New Life to Outdoor Lab
BY ERIN BURKETT ’20
2 MIN. READ
Josh Mott ’04 has been an outdoorsman his entire life. Growing up with woods behind his house to play and explore, and only coming in for mealtimes, he has always been at home in nature. Now, he is passing on his environmental knowledge and passion to students who are eager to learn.
Through his role as a science teacher and outdoor lab coordinator at Pike High School in Indianapolis, Mott is opening doors for young people to have unique outdoor experiences and learn new, exciting skills. He has pioneered project-based learning and hands-on lab opportunities for his pupils. With units on plant and insect identification, climate change, and biodiversity, Pike students are receiving a unique education that goes beyond reading books in the classroom.
A special partnership with a neighboring retirement community has allowed students to build relationships with a different generation and practice their public speaking, as the curriculum includes the opportunity for some students to share what they have learned about environmental science with the residents. Mott has also been able to organize and host field trips for younger students at the outdoor lab, introducing students to nature and science at a young age. High school students have helped lead such groups and develop their own leadership skills. Students have the opportunity to hike, fish, and learn about bird watching and water testing.
Mott has been passionate about ecology for as long as he can remember and it was especially ignited during his time in Anderson University’s biology department and field work with the late Dr. Dan Ippolito. The foundational education he received as a Raven prepared him for his unique path to education.
“The Integration of Faith and Science course I took was especially impactful,” Mott shares. “It sparked something in me and I have continued to research. It’s influenced how I teach biology.”
After receiving his master’s degree from Indiana University, Mott took a job as an environmental scientist. He quickly realized he loved the field work but not the administrative tasks required of the position. “I was really thinking and praying at this time,” Mott explains. “I realized I was passionate about three things: science, teaching, and mentoring youth.” This, he shares, is how he came to teaching. He applied for and received the Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship and began his journey as an educator.
“It gives me so much joy,” Mott exudes, referring to sharing and educating youth and his community about the environment. As a passionate Christ-follower, the generous ecologist is living out a God-given dream to introduce urban children to nature. “I thought I was going to have to somehow purchase my own land to do this. But I’ve realized God gave me the opportunity to use what I have at Pike High School.”
Mott has expanded and encouraged the use of this outdoor space in Indianapolis, continuing the development of the unique, life-giving environmental program. It is a flourishing, community oasis. Mott and his students have worked to return native plant species to the area. “When I’m out with the kids I feel like I am doing what I’m meant to do.”
Anderson University is on a mission to educate students for lives of faith and service, offering more than 60 undergraduate majors, 30 three-year degrees, 20 NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports, alongside adult and graduate programs. The private, liberal arts institution is fully accredited and recognized among top colleges for its business, computer science, cybersecurity, dance, engineering, nursing, and teacher education programs. Anderson University was established in 1917 in Anderson, Indiana, by the Church of God.