Biology Community Connections
Vivarium
Blackburn College’s Vivarium houses numerous species of avian, terrestrial, and aquatic animals, including lizards, turtles, and snakes. Students are actively involved in all aspects of animal care—from feeding and cleaning to health monitoring and enrichment.
Students also have opportunities to share their knowledge with the community, occasionally taking the vivarium to regional events or into schools, educating about invertebrate, reptile and amphibian care, habitats, management, and ecological importance.
Science Day
Blackburn College’s annual Science Day invites high school students to explore biology, chemistry, physics, psychology and computer science through engaging labs and experiments. The event is planned entirely by biology student workers and offers a glimpse into college-level academics, with Blackburn students and faculty guiding activities throughout the day. Blackburn Biology workers get experience with event organization, planning, volunteer management, scheduling, budgeting, t-shirt design, and event execution. High school students also have the opportunity to engage in friendly competition and demonstrations focusing on different scientific disciplines.
Bee Program
The nearly 10-year-old Blackburn Bee Program blends hands-on learning, sustainability, and scientific inquiry, continuing a legacy that stretches back over a century. As a designated Bee Campus USA, they connect with the local community to help educate and support Carlinville’s Bee City USA members. Additionally, students capture swarms, split hives, practice queen rearing, collect and analyze data, and use sustainable practices to harvest honey.
The Bee Program is a significant part of Blackburn’s sustainability practices on campus to support local pollinators. The Program is also highlighted as part of the Ecology coursework for Biology majors.
Wildlife & Habitat Management
Blackburn students conduct wildlife management and habitat management practices on both public and private lands in the region through our Biology coursework. We maintain relationships with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, allowing us access and to assist in the management of some state-owned properties, including state parks and natural areas. Our faculty develop and maintain relationships with local landowners to work and learn on private properties that are not otherwise accessible to the public. Students learn and conduct game camera trapping, habitat assessment, stream ecology assessments, invasive species management and control, prescribed burning, etc.
Work with State Agencies
Blackburn College is also the only college in the U.S. to work with a state agency to conduct an annual training for undergraduate students on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) management and sampling in White-tailed deer.
Our good working relationship with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) makes this training possible, as it is led by regional IDNR biologists in collaboration with Blackburn faculty.
Internships
Our Blackburn Biology students have the opportunity to do internships as a component of their experiential learning at Blackburn.
Students apply to work in a number of different regional organizations to earn career experiences while gaining Blackburn College credit toward their degree.
Our students have recently done internships with organizations such as the St. Louis Zoo, Missouri Department of Conservation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Illinois Natural History Survey,
