The American Geosciences Institute’s Status of the Geoscience Workforce has been pointing to shortages in key geoscience fields for years and it was Dr. Schmidt’s vision to provide opportunities for students to experience the geosciences as a legitimate and respected career field. Before the early 2000s, there were practically no UDHS seniors choosing the geosciences as a career option out of high school but that all changed after the introduction of the Advanced Geosciences courses.  Now, some of Schmidt’s students choose the geosciences each year as an undergraduate option and pursue the discipline as a career.  The Pathfinders project includes many of these students who now act as ambassadors for the field and mentors for UDHS high school students considering the geosciences as a career.