Strategic Planning for the Bartlett-Crowe Field Station

Emory And Henry College, Emory VA

Investigators

Abstract

Emory & Henry College has been awarded a planning grant to develop the inaugural five-year strategic plan for the newly-established Bartlett-Crowe Field Station. Founded in 2015 through a generous donation by Dr. Charles Bartlett, the mission is to provide education, research, and service opportunities in the Appalachian forest and river ecosystems by offering innovative field-based education programs and multipurpose research facilities. Situated on a 72-acre property located on the Middle Fork of the Holston River in southwest Virginia, the field station offers students and researchers a remarkable variety of southern Appalachian terrestrial and aquatic habitats for study. The surrounding region hosts some of the most unique and diverse assemblages of salamanders, fishes, and freshwater mussels in North America. Through the development of a comprehensive strategic plan, the Bartlett-Crowe Field Station will contribute to the critical baseline of scientific field-based knowledge that informs our understanding of the natural world and human impacts on the environment. In addition, Emory & Henry College, the leading educational institution in southwest Virginia with a focus on civic engagement, will use the Bartlett-Crowe Field Station as a unique resource for enhancing STEM education initiatives by creating field-based integrative STEM opportunities for teachers and students. The result will be to expand opportunities for STEM undergraduate research, STEM outreach, informal science education, and sound environmental stewardship in rural southwest Virginia. Strategic planning for the Bartlett-Crowe Field Station will begin with the development of partnerships. An advisory council comprised of stakeholders, educators, and science advisors will guide and shape the science and education plan. Key personnel from model field stations and expert science advisors will be consulted on planning research activities, resource and data management, and field station operations. Workshops on Educational Planning, Research Planning, and Field Station Operations will be hosted to facilitate collaborative discussion among Bartlett-Crowe personnel, local stakeholders and invited consultants. The resulting strategic plan will provide a framework for decision-making that emphasizes robust, long-term science and education objectives, and will guide the management and operation of the station in a way that is efficient, effective, and sustainable.