Goats in the Garden: Sustainable Grazing for Ecological Restoration and Land Management

Type: Undergraduate
Author(s): Taryn Mitchell Ranch Management Sebastian Ranch Management Brooke Best Ranch Management
Advisor(s): Jeffrey Geider Ranch Management

Invasive plant species significantly impact native ecosystems by outcompeting indigenous flora, reducing biodiversity, and disrupting the delicate ecological equilibrium. In collaboration with the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, this research study evaluated the efficacy of utilizing sheep and goats as a sustainable grazing strategy to mitigate invasive plant species within the garden.

Vegetation analyses, specifically vegetative cover and species richness, of pre- and post-grazing indicated an initial decline in plant species richness. However, based on prior studies, plant succession and resilience are anticipated to rebound in the grazed areas over time (Booth & Skelton, 2009; Rathfon et al., 2021). The research findings also indicated environmental and operational benefits, including reduced labor costs, minimized chemical inputs, decreased noise pollution, and mimicked historical ecological processes that have been found to improve soil health and biodiversity. The findings from this research emphasize the targeted use of livestock grazing as a sustainable land management practice. This case study highlights the benefits of integrating controlled livestock grazing into public garden maintenance protocols. Furthermore, this research contributes to the existing literature regarding sustainable land management and the role of livestock in controlling invasive species and restoring ecosystems.

References

Booth, A. L., & Skelton, N. W. (2009). The use of domestic goats and vinegar as municipal weed control alternatives. Environmental Practice, 11(1), 3-16. DOI:10.1017/S1466046609090012

Rathfon, R. A., Greenler, S. M., & Jenkins, M. A. (2021). Effects of prescribed grazing by goats on non‐native invasive shrubs and native plant species in a mixed‐hardwood forest. Restoration Ecology, 29(4).

https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.13361

Native Grassland Stewardship: An Archetype for Sustainable Management

Type: Graduate
Author(s): Riley O'Connor Ranch Management Brooke Best Ranch Management Kelton Eason Ranch Management Jeffrey Geider Ranch Management Ashley Titus Ranch Management
Advisor(s): Jeffrey Geider Ranch Management

Native Grassland Stewardship: An Archetype for Sustainable Management

Fort Worth, Texas, encompasses two significant tallgrass prairie ecosystems: the Blackland Prairie and the less-studied Fort Worth Prairie. Currently, less than 1% of these prairies remain due to escalating urban expansion, unsustainable agricultural practices, and the growth of the energy sector (Robison et al., 1995). With over 93% of Texas land under private ownership, effective conservation strategies must inclusively engage all stakeholders, notably land managers (Texas Parks and Wildlife, 2025). This study aims to develop a comprehensive management plan for the native prairie ecosystem located within the Botanical Research Institute of Texas at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. The proposed plan is designed to act as an archetype for regeneratively managed prairies and ranches.
Field methodologies encompassed a detailed vegetation survey, forage-clipping analyses, and identification of dominant species. From an ecological perspective, this research emphasizes the critical role of adaptive management in restoring native ecosystems, fostering responsible land stewardship, and promoting public engagement in grassland conservation. The findings aim to contribute practical insights for landowners, conservationists, and policymakers dedicated to preserving and sustainably managing tallgrass prairies in North Texas.

Keywords: Prairie Conversation, Adaptive Management, Sustainable Grazing, Ranch Management

References
Robison, R., White, D. B., & Meyer, M. H. (1995). Plants in Prairie Communities. St. Paul, MN: University of Minnesota. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/93930.
Texas Parks and Wildlife. (2025). Private Landowners and Listed Species. https://tpwd.texas.gov/wildlife/wildlife-diversity/nongame/listed-species/private-landowners-and-listed-species/

Beef for Bees: A Mixed Methods Investigation of Undergraduate Students' Efficacy and Experiences in Experiential Learning

Type: Graduate
Author(s): Ashley Titus Interdisciplinary Jeff Geider Ranch Management Megan O'Connell Interdisciplinary Molly Weinburgh Interdisciplinary
Advisor(s): Jeff Geider Ranch Management

Having Your Cake & Eating It, Too: A Mixed Methods Study of Community (Citizen) Science in Higher Education

Type: Graduate
Author(s): Ashley Titus Interdisciplinary Jeff Geider Ranch Management Megan O'Connell Biology Molly Weinburgh Interdisciplinary
Advisor(s): Jeff Geider Ranch Management

Experiential learning in higher education is often undervalued due to perceived logistical challenges and concerns that reducing time spent in classroom lectures will lead to diminished student content knowledge, especially in science-intensive curricula. This mixed-methods dissertation study challenges this assumption by exploring the experiences and impact of a community (citizen) science intervention on undergraduate students’ self-efficacy in scientific learning, practice, and environmental action. The dissertation research was guided by two central questions: (1) To what degree do undergraduate students’ self-efficacy for learning and doing science and environmental action change after engaging in a community science intervention? and (2) How do the students explain their experiences with the community science intervention?

The eight-week intervention was conducted at a private university in the fall of 2022 and 2023 as part of a core curriculum course offered for majors and non-majoring undergraduate students through a Ranch Management department. The 34 participants (N = 34) were selected based on course enrollment, and the data sources included (a) pre- and post-intervention surveys and (b) student artifacts (such as discussion posts, reflection papers, and opinion papers). The integrated findings indicate that engagement in the community science intervention significantly increased students’ self-efficacy for learning and doing science and improved undergraduate students’ content knowledge, environmental collective efficacy, personal agency, and critical scientific literacy. These results highlight the potential benefits of incorporating community science curricula within higher education courses and the capacity of experiential learning to enhance content comprehension, foster higher-order cognitive processes, and cultivate pro-environmental behaviors.

Circular Ranching: A Sustainable Approach to Land Management

Type: Undergraduate
Author(s): Sunny Courtwright Ranch Management Jeffrey Geider Ranch Management Ashley Titus Ranch Management
Advisor(s): Jeffrey Geider Ranch Management
Location: Second Floor, Table 5, Position 2, 1:45-3:45

Throughout the United States, industrial agriculture has created a set of traditional methods used to raise beef cattle. These traditional methods have large adverse effects on the environment as well as profitability. The producer who took part in this case study has been managing a beef cattle operation in North Texas since 1999. This rancher’s non-traditional, holistic land management and business approaches to finishing grass-fed cattle for his custom beef brand are drastically different than traditional methods. This single-case study examines the intersection of profitability and sustainability on a traditional beef cattle operation compared to a holistic non-traditional beef cattle operation. The data collected for this study includes interviews, a review of government documents, historical management documents, soil laboratory reports, and botanical and phenological reports. The findings from this study inform land management practices that boost both economic value and long-term environmental sustainability.

Community Science in Ranch Management: A Catalyst for Undergraduate Connections to Sustainability

Type: Graduate
Author(s): Ashley Titus Ranch Management Jeff Geider Ranch Management Molly Weinburgh Interdisciplinary
Advisor(s): Jeff Geider Ranch Management Molly Weinburgh Interdisciplinary
Location: Second Floor, Table 6, Position 3, 1:45-3:45

Environmental socio-scientific topics are commonly taught in university courses. Interestingly, researchers, who have utilized climate change as a socio-scientific issue, have identified that following engagement in planned activities, students experienced an increase in content knowledge but could not view themselves as environmental agents of change (Ballantyne et al., 2016; Shepardson et al., 2011; Stevenson et al., 2014). Science literacy for environmental issues is vital. However, if students lack the ability to see themselves as being able to assist or have agency in the mitigation of environmental issues, these problems will persist. Community (citizen) science is an instructional method that falls under the experiential learning umbrella and has been explained as “the engagement of non-professionals in scientific investigations – asking questions, collecting data, or interpreting results” (Miller-Rushing et al., 2012, p. 285). McKinley et al. (2017) advocated that engagement with community science prepares and empowers participants for involvement in policy discussions and decisions and to educate and motivate their communities to participate in conservation. Applying this notion to community science projects centered on environmental issues suggests that students may be more likely to be motivated to engage in environmental action following engagement with community science activities. While there are a few research studies that have utilized community science to study undergraduates' motivations, gains in content knowledge, and interests in science; even fewer studies have been conducted in undergraduate courses to study undergraduates’ self-efficacy for science and environmental action. The participants in this study are science major and non-science major undergraduate students (18 years or older) enrolled in a Ranch Management core curriculum course at a university in the Southern region of the U.S. The primary objectives of this study are to identify the degree to which non-science majoring and science majoring undergraduate students’ self-efficacy for learning and doing science changes after engaging in a community science intervention. Preliminary findings indicate that both groups increased efficacy while differences were found. The findings from this research will contribute to informing educators in science departments about non-science and science majoring undergraduate student experiences with socio-scientific-based community science projects.

Exploring Citizen Science in the Classroom: An Assessment of Undergraduate Classification Accuracy in a Ranch Management Course

Type: Graduate
Author(s): Morgan Washington Ranch Management Jeff Geider Ranch Management Ashley Titus Ranch Management
Advisor(s): Jeff Geider Ranch Management
Location: Basement, Table 6, Position 3, 1:45-3:45

Citizen (community) science platforms have become a crucial aspect of involving the public in scientific research. The platform Zooniverse particularly has grown to include a wide range of participants in the scientific community. Though there is a substantial amount of literature surrounding the efficacy of community science platforms, relatively few studies tackle applications in undergraduate education. This study investigates undergraduate student engagement with Zooniverse. Utilizing Zooniverse, participants analyzed the flowering of North Texas prairie species. Primary objectives include documenting the accuracy and speed of student identifications and comparing potential differences between historical botanical specimen images provided by the Botanical Research Institute of Texas and images collected from iNaturalist. These findings will help inform the usage of community science platforms in undergraduate education spaces and more particularly for non-science majors.