Marcy Thomas

Senior Instructor Emerita in Biological Sciences Laboratory

Interested in environmental science, plant biology, and geospatial analysis.

Long committed to the notion of kinesthetic learning, I believe in teaching through the laboratory experience. My career at Wellesley has largely focused on teaching labs in Organismal Biology, Cell Biology, Environmental Horticulture, and Ecology within the Biological Sciences Department.

More recently I have become involved in the Environmental Studies Program, teaching and developing labs for the Introductory Environmental Science course (ES 101: Fundamentals of Environmental Science). Exposing students to an interdisciplinary way of exploring their environment has been rewarding. Many of our students complete amazing projects that often combine academic research with a pinch of activism, resulting in visible change. Within the Environmental Studies Program I have also co-taught the capstone course ES 300: Environmental Decision Making and a lab in ES 220: Environmental Limits and Conservation.

For the past two years, I have taught in the First-Year Writing Program. My course entitled The Influence of Place (Writing 171) focuses on the powerful bidirectional effect of the environment on many organisms.

My interests in conservation and sustainable agriculture led me to serve on the Board for the non-profit Medway Community Farm as well as several municipal boards including Conservation Commission, Open Space Committee and the Master Plan Committee. I currently volunteer at MCI Framingham Women's Correctional Facility in the Horticulture Program. At the College, I serve on several Scholarship Committees and as a member of the Environmental Studies Advisory Committee. In the past I have served on the Admission Committee and have been the Department Webmaster.

A runner from the heart up, I continue to enjoy hiking, will always love to travel and spend time with friends and family.

Biology Department

Environmental Studies

Medway Community Farm

Education

  • B.S., University of Massachusetts
  • M.A., Smith College