Texas Tech University

About the Center at Junction

 

Natural resource and watershed engagement, research and literacy, and outdoor education in the Texas Hill Country.

The Texas Tech Center at Junction, acquired in 1971, is the home to the Llano River Field Station and the Outdoor Learning Center. Since its inception until present, the center hosts a summer academic program where students can receive 3 – 4 credit hours in a 15-day intensive session, offering field based courses in science and photography. The center facilitates a number of conferences and workshops throughout the year that bring over 4,000 visitors to the center annually.

Encompassing more than 400 acres at the Texas Tech University site in Junction, and bisected by the South Llano River, the Llano River Field Station (LRFS) is the largest inland field station in Texas. The mission of the LRFS is to encourage, conduct and coordinate basic and applied research projects dealing with water/watersheds, invasive species, range management, natural resources, ecological restoration and environmental education in the Central Texas Hill Country.

For over a decade now, the Llano River Field Station (LRFS) at the Texas Tech University regional site in Junction, Texas, has brought a diverse mix of stakeholders together to research and address solutions to essential natural resources and water issues. Among those stakeholders are federal and state agencies, municipalities, universities, K-12 schools, landowners and other local groups, who share expertise, planning and resources. Alongside these community partners, our faculty, students and staff cultivate relationships and collaborate on solutions.

The LRFS is a unique initiative by Texas Tech University to use its vast resources and academic expertise to assist Texas Hill Country communities in solving natural resource and education problems. LRFS's efforts on behalf of the community have had a phenomenal impact.

One of those impacts has been K-12 engagement. The LRFS gives children the opportunity to explore their interests in the outside world through research and discovery opportunities. Students are engaged with university staff and learn about the world around them, while gaining hands-on experience that not only triggers their curiosities, but also fosters a deeper commitment to their own education.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Llano River Field Station is to encourage, conduct and coordinate basic and applied research projects dealing with water/watersheds, invasive species, range management, natural resources, ecological restoration and environmental education in the Central Texas Hill Country.


Celebrating 50 years of connecting people to nature.

TTU Center at Junction