No course-specific feedback yet.
Fall 2026
American Environmental History
A survey of interactions between people and natural environments in America, covering ecological change, conservation, and public policy.
Summary
1 / 7
Historical reviews of William (bill) Cronon: Reviewers note a heavy reading load but manageable overall workload, with fair grading and clear exam guidance. Some students found the essay-style exams and tough six-page papers challenging, preferring paper-based synthesis over fact-cramming for exams.
Grade history
↗ average GPA
letter grades
letter grades
A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F
All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors
Prerequisites
Course mapSophomore standing or 3 credits in HISTORY, GEOG or ENVIR ST
- Sophomore standing
- 3 credits in HISTORY, GEOG or ENVIR ST
This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.
Prerequisite text tree
- Any of
- Sophomore standing
- 3 credits in HISTORY, GEOG or ENVIR ST
Professors
Fall 2026No course-specific feedback yet.
Historical instructors & teaching patterns
Oliver Lazarus is the current instructor. Historical reviews for William Cronon praise his storytelling and deep knowledge, though some find the material boring or the exams frustrating.
MATT VILLENEUVE is recorded teaching in Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
WILLIAM CRONON is recorded teaching in Fall 2007, Fall 2008, Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Fall 2017, Fall 2020. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Calendar & sections
Fall 2026Schedule loads here as you scroll.
| Section | Mode | Enrolled / capacity | Waitlist |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | Classroom Instruction | 41 / 72 | 0 |
| DIS 301 | Classroom Instruction | 11 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 302 | Classroom Instruction | 11 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 303 | Classroom Instruction | 10 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 304 | Classroom Instruction | 9 / 18 | 0 |
| LEC 001 | Classroom Instruction | 11 / 72 | 0 |
| DIS 301 | Classroom Instruction | 3 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 302 | Classroom Instruction | 1 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 303 | Classroom Instruction | 3 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 304 | Classroom Instruction | 4 / 18 | 0 |
| LEC 001 | Classroom Instruction | 18 / 72 | 1 |
| DIS 301 | Classroom Instruction | 3 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 302 | Classroom Instruction | 6 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 303 | Classroom Instruction | 4 / 18 | 0 |
| DIS 304 | Classroom Instruction | 5 / 18 | 1 |
Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.
Meeting source records
Student experience
the class
Historical reviews for William Cronon describe the course as one of the best at the university, praising his storytelling lectures and deep subject knowledge. Students report high engagement and significant intellectual growth, with one reviewer calling it the best course at the UW.
Recent recorded grades — Fall 2023: 3.49 GPA, 77.9% A/AB (n=68 letter grades); Fall 2024: 3.64 GPA, 81.4% A/AB (n=70 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.64 GPA, 81.4% A/AB (n=70 letter grades).
difficulty & workload
Historical reviews of William (bill) Cronon: Reviewers note a heavy reading load but manageable overall workload, with fair grading and clear exam guidance. Some students found the essay-style exams and tough six-page papers challenging, preferring paper-based synthesis over fact-cramming for exams.
Historical reviews of Matt Villeneuve, William (bill) Cronon: Experiences vary, with some finding the first half of the semester boring or lectures unnecessary for assignments. One student noted that Matt Villeneuve’s philosophy background shifted the focus away from environmental history, while others found the class inspiring for their majors.
Topics
Grades
Fall 2026 · Projected
Before grades are released– average GPA
Approximate 80% prediction interval
About this estimate
The course’s semester-average GPA, not an individual student’s grade. The center uses 5 same-season terms, weighted toward recent results.
The range uses the finite-sample 80th-percentile rank of absolute errors from earlier same-season forecasts. Each forecast uses only records from earlier terms. At least four forecasts are required; bounds are rounded outward and limited to 0–4. This is an empirical estimate: changing instructors or grading policies can reduce its coverage.
8 earlier forecasts · 0.09 GPA average error.
Grades over time
Through Fall 2026
More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data
Where this course fits relative to
Latest available grades · Fall 2025 · all course levels
GPA
Higher than % of other courses in this group.
Course GPAs · red marks this course’s range
letter grades
More recorded grades than % of other courses in this group.
Typical course in this group: letter grades.
About this comparison
1320 courses over the same term, each with at least 30 recorded letter grades. Cross-listed courses count once. GPA is not a measure of difficulty or teaching quality. The typical course is the median by recorded grade count; tied values are not counted as lower. Grade counts describe course scale, not unique students or typical section size.
Descriptions compare GPA with this group’s average: at least 0.20 higher or lower; otherwise close to average. Section size uses median recorded enrollment: small up to 30, mid-sized 31–99, large 100+. Lectures and discussion/lab sections are described separately.
Sources & history
UW–Madison
Catalog & offerings
Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.
Catalog observation history
Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.
Selected offering source records
American Environmental History
Recorded 2026-09-07American Environmental History
Recorded 2026-09-07American Environmental History
Recorded 2026-09-07Raw records
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"offering_id": "1272:360:009288",
"course_id": "ENVIRST/GEOG/HISTORY 460",
"course_uid": "course_1ec9030d6a6bab15eba6a984",
"term_id": "1272",
"source_course_id": "009288",
"source_subject_id": "360",
"title": "American Environmental History",
"credits_min": 4,
"credits_max": 4,
"typically_offered": "Fall, Spring, Summer"
},
{
"run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
"semester": "1272",
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"offering_id": "1272:416:009288",
"course_id": "ENVIRST/GEOG/HISTORY 460",
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"term_id": "1272",
"source_course_id": "009288",
"source_subject_id": "416",
"title": "American Environmental History",
"credits_min": 4,
"credits_max": 4,
"typically_offered": "Fall, Spring, Summer"
},
{
"run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
"semester": "1272",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"offering_id": "1272:448:009288",
"course_id": "ENVIRST/GEOG/HISTORY 460",
"course_uid": "course_1ec9030d6a6bab15eba6a984",
"term_id": "1272",
"source_course_id": "009288",
"source_subject_id": "448",
"title": "American Environmental History",
"credits_min": 4,
"credits_max": 4,
"typically_offered": "Fall, Spring, Summer"
}
]Rate My Professors
Student reviews
Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.
Read original reviews
Madgrades
Grade history
Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.
Explore recorded gradesModel outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Full model traces
Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.
Model & dataset provenance
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"model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
"task_version": "14",
"output_id": "48be63129a65d84b1a8a3217eb7cc9c35e12e7c4c3d2f7147d325efc65f6be95",
"requirements_status": "valid",
"dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}