<< Back 12/18/02 Manifest destiny Learning Center at Purchase Knob realizes its role By Don Hendershot The Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center at Purchase Knob was one of five National Park Service education and science centers officially established in 2001. For those closest to Purchase Knob, that action was simply manifest destiny. “When Kathryn McNeil and Voit Gilmore donated the Purchase to the park, it was their wish that it be used for environmental education. I think it’s wonderful that the Park Service was able to thank them in this way,” said Susan Sachs, education coordinator at the center. Purchase Knob — accessed from the Hemphill area of Haywood County — became part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in August 2000. The 530 acres at nearly 5,000 feet in elevation provide great opportunities for research in high-elevation ecosystems, air and water quality and old growth forests. The field station atmosphere at the Purchase — which includes a chalet-type house with several bedrooms, kitchen facilities and meeting rooms — greatly enhances educational and research opportunities. Researchers are able to network, learn from each other and share scientific discoveries. On-site researchers are also able to interact with teachers, volunteers and school groups. “Our mission at the Purchase is to increase the quantity and quality of research in national parks and to increase the distribution of that research to as wide an audience as possible. One of the best ways of accomplishing that is by getting students and volunteers involved, hands-on,” Paul Super, science coordinator at the center, said. Research and education projects began at the Purchase in the summer of 2000, before the facility was officially designated as a National Park Service Learning Center. Sachs said that various school groups — including Upward Bound, a math program for minority and disadvantaged science and math students — worked on projects such as a salamander marking and recapture program. Other ongoing research projects at the Purchase that fit in well with the learning center’s mission include ground-level ozone research, the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) and avian population studies. Sachs was hired as education coordinator in 2000 and Super became science coordinator in 2002. Super was the first ever GSMNP resource manager stationed in the North Carolina half of the park, and Sachs was the first GSMNP educator stationed in Haywood County. These North Carolina positions have allowed the park to reach a whole new audience. Research permits in the GSMNP have increased by 16 percent since the creation of the Learning Center, and there has been a 62-percent increase in the number of researchers housed within the park’s border. Researchers housed at Purchase Knob have also provided in-kind educational and research time with an estimated value of $239,000. Some of those services include development of training materials, the use of intern assistants, the development of educational and research protocols and high quality, direct contact with more than 300 park visitors. In fiscal year 2001, just over 1,700 people were involved in Learning Center programs. By fiscal year 2002 — with both Sachs and Super working full time in North Carolina — that figure more than doubled to 3,819. Staff at the center has developed two new field trip units to involve middle school students in collecting data for research projects. Through the Learning Center, students have been able to participate in different ATBI projects. Cherokee High School students and Central Haywood High School students taking part in a snail inventory discovered two species new to Swain County as well as two new state records. There are also long-term monitoring studies of birds, moths and salamanders at the Purchase that involve middle school, high school and college students. “Having students directly involved in actual research is more meaningful to them and to us,” Sachs said. There are also ample opportunities for adult volunteers to work on meaningful projects associated with the Learning Center. The Asheville Mushroom Club is working in conjunction with scientists from Duke, Appalachian State and Eastern Illinois University to create a FungiMap. The project will attempt to map the distribution of 50 common fungi throughout the park. The Learning Center is also involved in volunteer inventories of ferns, land snails, lilies and the Appalachian race of the yellow-bellied sapsucker. The Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center is commissioned to serve the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Obed Wild and Scenic River, Big South Fork and the southern portion of the Appalachian Trail. “The Learning Center has a much broader vision and scope than simply Purchase Knob. We would love to have a landscape of understanding of natural processes that reaches throughout the community and the entire Southern Appalachians,” Super said. Super and Sachs say the Learning Center’s first full year has been highlighted by hard work, wonderful rewards and unlimited potential. According to Sachs, it is especially rewarding to see some of the same faces returning. “That was one of our missions from the beginning to get these kids interested and have them return year after year as students and/or interns,” she said. And the students have benefited from the process as well. Jessica Jaynes of Tuscola worked at the Purchase as an intern studying insect pollinators. Her experience allowed her to secure a work-study job in that field when she enrolled at North Carolina State University. Super said one of the toughest aspects of the job has actually been created by the success of the center. “It’s a hard thing to say no to a teacher because a program is already full. And often I feel like I don’t get to spend as much time with groups as I would like.” Sachs and Super looked into their crystal ball to describe a typical day at the Purchase in the near future. “The morning would begin with one or more school groups on site. There would be some calls around to off-site programs, like maybe an ozone garden at Tuscola to collect data. “In the afternoon the school groups could meet with some of the interns or scientists doing research at the Purchase and there would be a public program scheduled for the evening.” The heart and soul of the Purchase is research and education. But part of that includes interaction with hikers and other park guests. “It’s important to find a good balance. I enjoy hearing footsteps on the deck and walking out to visit with hikers who have stopped on the porch to picnic,” Super said. Sachs said the community support has been terrific. “The Haywood County school system, community foundations and larger organizations like Friends of the Smokies and Discover Life In America have all been essential parts of our success,” said Sachs. “And the courtesy from local trail riders has been great. We put up signs noting where sensitive areas are and they have been acknowledged and we’ve had no negative impact.” Super and Sachs say that while visitors are welcome, it is best to park at the lower gate and walk in, even if the gate should be unlocked. The gate is locked at the end of the day and vehicles could be locked in. For more information regarding the Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center call 828.926.6251 or 828.497.1908.