Eastern Kentucky University is awarded a grant to develop a comprehensive strategic plan that will link the operations of two separate natural areas, Maywoods and Lilley Cornett Woods (LCW), in eastern Kentucky into a unified Biological Field Station (BFS) supporting a broad range of research, educational, and outreach activities. The plan will be created with input from a spectrum of stakeholders and experts in field station operations and administration under the guidance of professional facilitators. Maywoods is proximal to the campus with forest, forest-edge, and wetland environments, whereas Lilley Cornett Woods (~140 miles distant) includes old-growth forest that has supported ecological research over four decades. Both natural areas are currently operated as field stations, but the new strategic plan aims to maximize their potential and unite them with networked, digital information systems thus expanding their use by researchers and educators beyond EKU and our service area. In particular, the goal will be to asses the optimal role of both natural areas in research and education, and to identify the necessary parameters, equipment, facilities, and collaborations needed to create a cyberinfrastructure network between the BFS, main campus, and beyond. Facilities are currently limited and a long-term plan for improvement will enable full use of these natural areas not only in our traditional arenas of education and student research, but also by tapping into regional and national collaborations that broaden and deepen research efforts. For more information about these two research locations please see www.naturalareas.eku.edu/.
Project Summary. We received funding from NSF FSML to construct a comprehensive strategic plan for linking Eastern Kentucky University’s (EKU) natural areas into a field station system dedicated to the education of the public and K-12 and college students, and to research within the Appalachian ecosystem by local, regional, and national collaborators. Our planning activities occurred in two segments: first, pulling together a wide spectrum of stakeholders to identify our institutional and community needs and wants; and second, a concerted effort to develop a professional clientele to use our field station system for educational and scholarly pursuits. Our initial planning efforts were successful. The planning group recommended multiple major actions, critical to realizing the EKU field station system’s success in education and research. The two given highest priority were: constructing a research building and a housing facility at Lilley Cornett Woods (LCW), Letcher County, Kentucky. The planning group also identified obstacles to realizing our goals. In response, our group helped secure renewed institutional support for our field station system. As a result, EKU appointed an Associate Director of Research in the Division of Natural Areas to foster research opportunities within our field station system, and we are currently renting a property adjacent to LCW for housing that the University plans to purchase once mineral rights issues are resolved. Lastly, we were recently awarded an NSF FSML grant to construct a research center at LCW. The success of biological field stations is dependent on sustained use by professionals dedicated to its educational and research activities. To develop a pool of such dedicated users and others with shared needs, we took the lead in forming the Kentucky Organization of Field Stations (KOFS) in early 2012. The members include academic institutions throughout the state of Kentucky that own similar natural areas ripe for research and educational activities, and have scientists that can conduct research within our field station system and within proximal natural lands of the Appalachian ecosystem. To date the KOFS has taken steps to establish: state-wide plots for sampling to gather quantitative date on resident flora and fauna; state-wide water quality studies with targeted and synchronized sampling; and field courses and workshops to support these activities. Our next step in assuring the relevance and success of our field station system is to facilitate research of the surrounding Appalachian ecosystem. With this goal in mind, we are beginning to extend membership to non-academic, private and public entities that own or control significant tracts of land in the Appalachian mountains in Kentucky and contiguous states with the purpose conducting scientific research utilizing those tracts of land as part of the Appalachian ecosystem. We envision EKU’s field station system, specifically Lilley Cornett Woods, as a staging facility for this research. Intellectual Merit. EKU scientists continue several avenues of research at our natural areas with plans for expanded, scientifically-comprehensive studies over the next 5-10 years carried out by EKU, regional, and national researchers in the Appalachian ecosystem. We recognize that research effectiveness is magnified with larger perspectives gained through collaborations. We have 40 years and over two decades of botanical and other ecological data at Lilley Cornett Woods and Maywoods, respectively, providing a template for investigating the integrated themes of environmental, ecological, and climatic change. The Appalachian ecosystem is a recognized "hotspot" of biological diversity, and so is ideal for investigating ecosystem structure, as modified by anthropogenic pressures and changing natural systems. In addition to quantifying changing diversity patterns and biogeochemical characteristics of terrestrial and aquatic systems, investigations exploring the behavior and impact of invasive species (e.g., the hemlock wooly adelgid), and changing patterns of carbon sequestration are particularly suited to our spectrum of disturbed, modified, and old-growth habitats. Broader Impact. EKU’s long tradition of education provides a foundation in serving a spectrum of educational needs. Our undergraduate science classes currently have strong experiential and field components. Student research by both undergraduates and graduates, as mentored by faculty investigators, is a significant part of our present field research. EKU’s College of Education offers degrees and continuing education to pre-service and in-service teachers, respectively – project-based training at our field station system will enhance learning of Kentucky’s teachers and as well that of their students. Our natural areas currently support outreach in K-12 education, fostering science literacy and serving underrepresented groups in Appalachia.
