Roughly 10 minutes south of the UNT campus, faculty and students are working with the Cole family and Johnson Development to preserve and reintroduce native prairie plants as plans move forward for Cole Ranch, a new 3,000-acre community.

"From the beginning, this has been a shared effort to understand what makes this prairie special, protect high-quality areas and find ways for native plants to remain part of Cole Ranch's future," says Jaime Baxter-Slye, clinical assistant professor in the College of Science. "It gives our students hands-on experience while helping create a community that understands and values its native landscape."

The Cole family's careful stewardship of the ranch since the 1930s helped maintain high-quality native prairie across portions of the property.

Baxter-Slye developed a proposal for a team to identify, collect and temporarily care for native plants from areas where relocation is needed. The group of four undergraduate interns and about 40 volunteers, including undergraduate and graduate students and community members, have been helping out since last fall.

Calvin Nering ('26), an ecology for environmental science graduate who is pursuing a Ph.D., says, "Knowing that our work will help preserve this prairie and shape how native landscapes are integrated into the community feels great."