Kean Students Catalog Westfield’s Environmental Resources

Six Kean University students created an Environmental Resource Inventory (ERI) for the Town of Westfield as their senior capstone project, saving the town time and money while also providing a foundation for future planning decisions.

The “living document” completed by students from the Department of Environmental and Sustainability Sciences (DESS) in partnership with the Westfield Green Team will be included as part of the town’s master plan.

“The environmental resource inventory the students created is something that many towns pay $10,000 to $20,000 for. The students integrated their knowledge, talent and experience, so the final ERI is a valuable tool to assist with the town's decision-making," said Daniela Shebitz, Ph.D., DESS chair and professor. "This opportunity allows the students to translate their years of coursework into real-life experience, but the most important thing that comes out of this community-engaged learning experience is that the students realize how important it is to work as a team while helping the community.”

The 271-page inventory provides detailed information on Westfield land use characteristics, parks, vegetation and trees, wildlife, history and other topics. It includes many maps created by the Kean students using GIS (Geographic Information System) that illustrate the location of important features such as areas of flooding concern and contamination sites.

The student team worked with Westfield’s Green Team as its client.

“This document is not simply a static snapshot frozen in time; it is a living document intended to evolve alongside the changing world,” the inventory states. “In the face of mounting environmental challenges, the imperative to understand and responsibly manage our natural resources has never been more urgent.”

Westfield Green Team member Lois Kraus worked closely with the students on the project. She said she appreciated the “scope of work and the story it tells.”

She said the inventory will find many uses following adoption into the town Master Plan. 

“It’s valuable for developing policies around stormwater management and educational pieces for our residents. It can be provided to the school district as an important reference document and incorporated into our Sustainable Jersey application,” Kraus said. “All the charts and graphs are extremely helpful; having everything in one place is so convenient. It saved our team and town countless hours and dollars.” 

Kean summa cum laude graduate Amanda Cunningham ’24 of Rahway, who earned a degree in earth science, was on the student team. She said it was challenging work – and when it was completed, fulfilling.

“The amount I've learned during this assignment is beyond measure,” she said. “I realized how much of the world around us goes unnoticed and underappreciated. The green spaces, river systems, recreational areas, traffic, flora and fauna of a town or city play crucial roles in its sustainability and in our safety and comfortability. This assignment helped me to understand what kind of environment I would like to live in.”

Keith Wamah ’24 of Newark, who graduated magna cum laude in May with a degree in biology/environmental biology, agreed. 

"The ERI is Westfield’s first and could be pivotal for the town’s Environmental Commission,” he said. “I learned the importance of teamwork and the unique expertise each member brings to a project."

The Kean student team also included Kenya De Dios ’24 of Paterson, who earned a degree in biology/environmental biology; Nataly Galarza of Hamilton, who is an August 2024 degree candidate in biology/environmental biology; and current senior earth science students Jacqueline Park Albaum of Bloomfield and Francisco Antonio Rodriguez of Edison.