The Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) and Miami University have announced the first graduating class of a conservation-focused online master’s degree program from Miami. The degree offers experiential learning locally through the Detroit Zoo. 

Created for working professionals, the Advanced Inquiry Program (AIP) is a one-of-a-kind master’s degree program that immerses students in collaborative inquiry and action as they champion change. Through web-based coursework from Miami and face-to-face experiential learning and field study at the Detroit Zoo, students connect with classmates, Miami University faculty, DZS experts, and community leaders locally, nationally, and globally.

A total of 12 adult learners in the Detroit area earned their master’s degrees in December by taking Miami coursework online and also engaging in experiential learning and field study on Zoo grounds, at the Belle Isle Nature Center, and with conservation education organizations throughout the Detroit area. Students connected firsthand with the DZS’s renowned conservation, sustainability, and education programs while improving their local neighborhoods through collaborative learning and action. 

“This program has transformed me beyond compare,” said December AIP graduate Taylor Mock, who works at Detroit Zoo. “I walk away from it feeling empowered as a scholar, an educator, and an in-tune global citizen. … Every connection I made impacted my perspective in some way. That is what I will cherish most from the program — an unwavering desire to seek perspective.”

The AIP master’s degree, created in 2009 by Project Dragonfly at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, brings together premier zoos, gardens, and other community learning organizations from across the country. The Detroit Zoo is the AIP’s first site in Michigan. At the Detroit Zoo, students have worked with researchers, joined field projects with local conservation and sustainability organizations, and designed hands-on investigations. Students have learned about conservation directly from experts and worked together to develop new approaches to local conservation efforts. 

“We are thrilled to have our first graduating class,” said Claire Lannoye-Hall, vice president of education for the DZS. “This collaboration with Miami University is allowing a new generation of conservationists to learn the latest conservation and education practices, while taking a lead for environmental action in their own communities.” 

The DZS is among the following U.S. organizations that are AIP sites:

• Brookfield Zoo Chicago
• Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
• Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
• Jacksonville Zoo and Botanical Gardens
• Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis
• San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
• Wildlife Conservation Society/Bronx Zoo, New York

Students in the AIP at the Detroit Zoo are leading the way in wildlife conservation, inquiry-based education, science communication, sustainable business practices, and animal welfare, said Dragonfly director Katie Feilen. Their actions aim to make positive social and ecological change in the Detroit metro area, she said.

The application is open until February 15, 2026, at AIP.MiamiOH.edu for the next Detroit cohort.

About Project Dragonfly - Since it began as a project funded by the National Science Foundation in the mid-1990s, Project Dragonfly has engaged millions of people through inquiry-driven learning media, public exhibits, and graduate programs worldwide. Dragonfly is based in the biology department at Miami University.

About Miami University - Founded in 1809, Miami University bears the name of the Myaamia people whose homelands are located in Ohio’s Miami Valley. Miami in Oxford, Ohio, is recognized as one of the eight original Public Ivies.

About The Detroit Zoological Society – The DZS, a renowned leader in humane education, wildlife conservation, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability, operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Center. The Detroit Zoo in Royal Oak hosts more than 1.2 million visitors annually. Its 125 acres of award-winning naturalistic habitats are home to more than 2,000 animals representing more than 200 species. The Belle Isle Nature Center sits on a 5-acre site on Belle Isle State Park in Detroit.

For media inquiries, contact:

• Sarah Culton, DZS communications manager, at sculton@dzs.org or (248) 336-5733.
• Jamie Bercaw Anzano, Dragonfly director of communications at Miami, at bercawj@miamioh.edu or (513) 529-8575.