The mission of the Department of Biology is to provide a challenging and supportive educational experience for our students so that each student can achieve his or her educational goals. Our Biology curriculum is sufficiently diverse to prepare our students for the broad variety of postgraduate opportunities that exist in biology; it is unified so that each student experiences all the relevant areas of biology, and it is current and reflective of the new information and methodology in the field. The Biology major provides a strong grounding in biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics, and then allows flexibility in the selection of electives. Recommendations for electives are offered for students interested in pursuing interests in medicine, specialized graduate study, the many careers in the allied health professions, and the teaching of biology in secondary schools.

The Environmental Science curriculum is designed to provide a thorough foundation in the basic sciences with an emphasis in biology through courses such as General Ecology, Botany, Invertebrate Zoology, Microbiology and Microbial Ecology. Students are encouraged to explore related areas such as environmental ethics and environmental policy.

In educating our students, we strive to challenge them in order to develop their independent and analytical reasoning skills, their communication skills, their appreciation of biological discoveries, and their ability to conduct original laboratory investigations. Our ultimate goal is to see our students go on to graduate school, professional school (medical, dental or veterinary), or relevant positions in government, private industry or education.