Media invited to dedication of Roth trailhead at KU field station


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Event: Media are invited to the dedication of the Stan and Janet Roth Trailhead structure and Trail at the University of Kansas Field Station. Some 200 attendees are expected at this private event.

Event organizers: This is a joint event held by the Kansas Biological Survey and KU Endowment.

When: A brief program starts at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 7, followed by a reception with Stan and Janet Roth and hiking on the Field Station trails.

Where: The Roth Trailhead at the circle drive of the Suzanne Ecke McColl Nature Reserve (KU Field Station) East 1600 Road. The site is approximately three miles north of Highway 24/40.

Description: The Roth Trailhead structure is a rammed-earth wall designed and built by KU architecture students under the direction of Chad Kraus, assistant professor in the School of Architecture, Design and Planning. It is intended to remind visitors that earthen architecture is ancient and inherently sustainable. The aim of the studio was to educate architecture students in the design and construction of rammed earth structures that are accessible to the public. The 1.8-mile Roth Trail is part of an 8-mile system of trails at the KU Field Station, which feature the wheelchair-accessible Rockefeller Prairie Trail, the Fitch Nature Reserve, proximity to native prairie, paths through forested areas,and a panoramic view of the Kansas River Valley and Mount Oread at the Kaw Valley Overlook.

Attendees: More than 200 are expected, including friends of the Roths and donors who have provided support for Field Station lands or KU student projects there. In attendance will be Stan and Janet Roth; KU Endowment President Dale Seuferling, Ed Martinko, director of Kansas Biological Survey; Scott Campbell, associate director for outreach and public service for the Kansas Biological Survey; Kraus and KU students who designed and built the trailhead structure; Eagle Scouts who have led other constructed projects at the KU Field Station; many former students and friends of the Roths.


Fri, 10/05/2012

author

Ed Martinko

Media Contacts

Ed Martinko

Kansas Biological Survey

785-864-1505