Menu

Steve Kerlin, Ph.D.

500 500 Stroud Water Research Center
Steve Kerlin, Ph.D.

Director of Education

Education Department

Contact

skerlin@stroudcenter.org
tel. 610-910-0053
970 Spencer Road, Avondale, PA 19311

Interest and Expertise

Steve Kerlin’s research interests are in environmental and science education, technology to enhance and extend outdoor education, educator professional development, and inquiry-based teaching and learning. He is an Eagle Scout and worked at Custaloga Town Scout Reservation for 10 summers. When not at work, Kerlin enjoys kayaking, rock climbing, backpacking, hiking, and other outdoor adventures with his family.

Download CV

Education

  • Ph.D., curriculum and instruction, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania.
  • M.S., curriculum and instruction, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania.
  • B.S., secondary education, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania.

Professional Experience

  • Director of education, Stroud Water Research Center, 2016–present.
  • Assistant professor of environmental education/interpretation and youth programming/camp management, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 2013–2015.
  • Statewide specialist in nature center management and Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education Outreach Specialist, University of Wisconsin Extension, 2013–2015.
  • Assistant professor of science and environmental education and director of the Center for Environmental Education, Northern Kentucky University, 2009–2013.
  • Science teacher, grades 7–9, Penns Valley Area School District, Pennsylvania, 1998–2005.

Publications

2024 Research Results and Recommendations for Effective Student/Teacher Engagement with National Parks About the Potomac Watershed

Kerlin, S., N. Marcum-Dietrich, K. Metzker, and D. Kline. 2024. Stroud Water Research Center Report #2024-002.

Protecting our WATERS: a 5E lesson sequence derived from a National Science Foundation- funded middle school watershed sustainability curriculum

Krauss, Z., D. Kline, N.I. Marcum-Dietrich, C. Stunkard, S. Kerlin, and C. Staudt. 2022. Science Activities 59(2):97–105.

Model My Watershed: an investigation into the role of big data, technology, and models in promoting student interest in watershed action

Marcum-Dietrich, N., S. Kerlin, A. Hendrix, N. Sorhagen, C. Staudt, and Z. Krauss. 2021. The Journal of Environmental Education 52(4).

A case study of the effects of a school outdoor learning initiative — Spring 2021

Kerlin, S., and N. Marcum-Dietrich. 2021. Report from Stroud Water Research Center.

Uncharted WATERS: sustaining a meaningful student teaching experience amidst a global pandemic via an online STEM curriculum

Marcum-Dietrich, N.I., C. Stunkard, Z. Krauss, and S. Kerlin. 2021. Current Issues in Middle Level Education 25(2): article 3.

See publications by all Stroud Center authors

Related News

Teachers Dive into Conestoga River Ecology and History

From macroinvertebrates to chemistry to habitat studies, teachers learned how to study stream health and lead outdoor stream studies.

Reimagining Classrooms

Whether you call them outdoor classrooms, living schoolyards, or ecological schoolyards — we’ve got ideas for how to make the outdoors a place of discovery.

Nurturing the Good Mind

Connecting to water as a source of ancestral significance has strengthened a throughline of cultural continuity for the Seneca Nation and the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware.

PA to Meet Rise of STEM Economy With New Education Standards Featuring Environmental Literacy

STEM professionals can help solve the world’s leading environmental challenges. Learn how Pennsylvania’s new science standards have been revised to prepare the next generation for such vital work.

Rooted in Science

30 years and counting, Stroud Water Research Center’s Education Department makes cutting-edge freshwater science fun.

Watershed on Wheels Makes a Splash at World Water Day Event

Families, community members, and a group of Mighty Writers gathered to learn about the world’s most precious natural resource — clean fresh water — and how to protect it.
You might also like