CSCR is proud to offer the Commonwealth GIS credential to area high school students.
Why Earn the Certificate in Geographic Information Systems Proficiency?
GIS is a powerful computing technology that people use to make a difference in the world– and that’s why GIS is important to CSCR. GIS is a skill needed throughout all industries from environmental science to public health. And demand for people with GIS skills is growing. But, students don’t need to wait for a future time in life to use GIS tools– GIS tools are needed today in the local community.
Examine this Story Map to see ways in which students are making a difference in their community today. See the tab, “What can I do with GIS.”
Certification
The Commonwealth GIS credential is a multi session (hybrid meeting format) program the equips students with workforce-preparedness skills & competencies that are directly applicable to addressing community-based issues with GIS tools. Successful completion of the program certifies students to offer their GIS skills to community stakeholders – land trusts, conservation officers, watershed stewardship leaders, municipal planners, community resilience committees, etc – to advance community goals while simultaneously building a portfolio of products and experiences that advance individual goals.
Our pioneering cohort (above): Kelly Kowenhoven (Colgate University, TA), and high school students Rose, Charlotte and Rishik.
Curriculum
The curriculum utilizes the Top 20 Essential Skills for ArcGIS Online. Students work independently through the tutorial lessons in the text and online, and then meet as a cohort to apply skills to the local community in the context of a driving question. The spring and summer 2025 cohort addressed the question, “Does land conservation add value to our state, our region, and our local community?”
The fall and winter 2025-2026 cohort is underway. They are addressing issues associated with building community resilience to a changed climate and a changing world by thinking about a simple question we frequently ponder: how do we best protect the people and places we love as a local community?
As a capstone project, students “package” their GIS-powered answer into a Story Map presented to and shared with local and state stakeholders.
Click here to access the curriculum guide.
Click here to access our Fall-Winter 2025-2026 Program Details document, including the calendar of meetings.
Registration for our fall-winter cohort has closed. Our next cohort will form for a spring / summer session, 2026.
Sponsors
We are grateful for support from the Hingham Conservation Land Trust, the Cohasset Conservation Trust, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. State Representative Joan Meschino’s support has been invaluable. Likewise, we acknowledge the invaluable support extended to all in the GIS community by our friends and colleagues at MassGIS, Esri, and NEARC, among others.
