“One night last winter, we were all ballroom dancing in the main hallway of the geology building.”
— Jennifer Rothfuss
Geology field trips and research have taken Jennifer Rothfuss from New Jersey’s Sterling Hill Zinc Mine to Alaska’s Matanuska Valley, with stops in between that include the Appalachian System and the Catskills.
She has also found valuable hands-on experiences through her participation in the French Creek Watershed Research Project with Professor Rachel O’Brien and semester-long research on aerobic microbes.
Fascinated by the past, Jennifer chose to complement her geology major with a history minor. “Both academic fields revolve around the history of the earth,” she says, “one in scientific terms, the other in human terms.”
The appeal geology has for Jennifer extends well beyond the academic, however. “The geology department is extremely close-knit,” she says.
Although Jennifer serves as treasurer of Geology Club, she is just as busy with activities outside her major. She sews costumes for the Playshop Theatre’s productions, works for social justice through the Allegheny College Peace Coalition, plays intramural volleyball, and volunteers at the student-run coffee shop, Grounds for Change. In off-hours you may find her biking, taking photographs, or working on her car.
Jennifer’s most memorable experience at Allegheny involves geology, but not the way you might think. “We definitely overcome the stereotype of the rough and tumble geologist,” she explains. “One night last winter, we were all ballroom dancing in the main hallway of the geology building.”