Advancing social studies with GIS: One educator's journey

[TomBaker]

Throughout his career, Chris Bunin has specialized in teaching geography, AP Human Geography, and history. Embracing innovation to keep students engaged, he has moved away from traditional worksheets and textbooks, integrating GIS technology into his lessons.

But Bunin’s journey with GIS began unexpectedly. “I stumbled across GIS and fell in love with it,” he said. Initially unsure about his career path, he discovered his passion for teaching and mentoring while working at youth summer camps. During his social studies teacher training, he took a mapping course that introduced him to Esri’s ArcGIS software, which he found particularly engaging.

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[VenkataKondepati]

Absolutely inspiring! Chris Bunin's journey is a great reminder of how transformative GIS can be—not just for spatial analysis, but for how we teach and inspire. Moving beyond textbooks to engage students with real-world geographic thinking is the kind of innovation education needs. Kudos to Chris for leading by example and bringing GIS into the classroom to build future-ready learners!