The goal of this lab is to become proficient in different parts of the ArcGIS software system so you can do the labs and complete a project for this class.  Some students who take this class have quite a bit of experience with ArcGIS software and others have none.  Each student will complete one of the following free ESRI Virtual Campus exercises. 

• Learning ArcGIS 9

• Learning ArcGIS 9 Spatial Analyst

• Geoprocessing with ArcGIS Desktop

• Turning Data into Information Using ArcGIS 9

Instructions on how UNC students can get access to these free online exercises are at http://www.lib.unc.edu/reference/gis/virtual_campus.html. The ESRI Virtual Campus is at http://campus.esri.com. If you are new to ArcGIS the you should complete Learning ArcGIS 9.  If you have some experience with ArcGIS but no experience with raster modeling in Spatial Analyst then you should complete Learning ArcGIS 9 Spatial Analyst. If you have experience with both vector and raster modeling in ArcGIS then complete one of the other two exercises.  Geoprocessing with ArcGIS Desktop teaches you how to organize, automate, and document spatial modeling processes.  Turning Data into Information Using ArcGIS 9 is a theoretical overview of GIS that has been written specifically as a companion for ArcGIS.

Lab Deliverable Summary: Since what each student will do in this lab will be different the goal is to show the instructor that you did the lab and understood what you were supposed to learn.  The courses can be quite time-consuming if you do every single quiz and overview.  I suggest first skimming through the entire course and then choosing those areas that you want to spend more time on.  If you want to save time then don't do the quizzes and go through the overview sections.  You can always come back to them.  The deliverable for this lab is 2-3 page typed summary of what you learned in the exercise and a portfolio of outputs (tables, maps, statistical output) from the different sections.  The portfolio should be well-organized and each output should be explained.  In addition to the 2-3 page summary you should also provide at least 6 GIS outputs but no more than 12.

 UNC students have access to all of the following courses:

• Learning ArcGIS 9 (Course)
• Learning ArcGIS 9 Spatial Analyst (Course)
• Turning Data into Information Using ArcGIS 9 (Course)
• Understanding Map Projections and Coordinate Systems (Course)
• Cartographic Design Using ArcGIS 9 (Course)
• Understanding Spatial Statistics in ArcGIS 9 (free to anyone even though it isn't on the UNC list)
• Editing Spatial Data in ArcMap: Tips and Tricks (Workshop)
• Geoprocessing with ArcGIS Desktop (Course)
• The 15-Minute Map: Creating a Basic Map in ArcMap (Workshop)
• Turning Data into Information Using ArcGIS 9 (Course)
• Understanding GIS Queries (Workshop)
• Using ArcCatalog: Tips and Tricks (Workshop)
• Working with Map Topology in ArcGIS (Workshop)
• Introduction to ArcGIS Network Analyst (free to anyone even though it isn't on the UNC list)
• Understanding Spatial Statistics in ArcGIS 9 (free to anyone even though it isn't on the UNC list)

I want each student to get as much out of this initial GIS Background/ Refresher as possible.  So if you have some special interest in other online courses that you would like to do for this first lab then propose what you'll do to me. The main goal of this stage is for you to learn as many GIS tools as possible so you can implement them in public health studies.  UNC students can also take ArcGIS short courses at UNC from the UNC library. See http://www.lib.unc.edu/reference/gis/training.html.