An open house at Free State High School’s prairie will celebrate 10 years of a restoration project there.
The celebration is scheduled for 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 3 outdoors at the prairie, which is situated behind the Free State football stadium at 4700 Overland Drive.
Free State has used the space as a staple research area for students. Biology teacher Julie Schwarting launched the project with University of Kansas researchers and continues to nourish it with other staff, students and community partners.
Schwarting said Helen Alexander, KU professor emerita, and Courtney Masterson, executive director of Native Lands Restoration Collaborative, will lead informal tours; Wendy Holman, education program coordinator of KU Field Station, will present artifacts to view; and Free State biology teachers will offer answers to questions about the space.
Come-and-go style, the celebration will welcome the community to observe how the prairie has developed over a decade.
It’s free and open to all ages, and organizers will accept donations to a new fund for prairie costs.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), reporting correspondent, has been with The Lawrence Times since July 2021. Born and raised in Lawrence, she enjoys focusing on issues that people in marginalized communities face and amplifying voices that are oftentimes unvalued. Read more of her work for the Times here.
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