Amplifying Austin & Texas

2024-25 Priorities Related to Place

We are partnering across Austin and Texas.

Attention to STEM learning in Texas: With our Charles A. Dana Center and a collaboration with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, we are developing open-source curriculum for introductory college-level mathematics courses to improve math readiness among students in high schools and community colleges statewide. To help classrooms, youth and families navigate STEM offerings available through UT Austin specifically, we also entered a new phase in development for the way-finding website that serves this purpose, STEM Starts. Bold new directions also opened in our work to inspire young science-lovers—from extensive outreach linked to recent total and annular solar eclipses to the reopening of the Texas Science and Natural History Museum.
Focusing on AI: The impact of artificial intelligence (AI) for Texas is clear, so the college is turning its attention to university-wide educational and operational initiatives to help UT set a standard across Texas and higher education in integrating AI thoughtfully into classrooms, research and operations. From curriculum design for AI literacy courses to seed-funding initiatives for projects to promote best practices with AI in teaching to leading the University’s public-facing “Year of AI” initiative—with its requisite events, new media products and resources—the College of Natural Sciences is at the forefront of conversations about a critical inflection point in AI.

We are engaging the public with science.

Raising our outreach profile: To build public awareness about the value of the scientific work our researchers do that transforms lives for the benefit of society, we have amped up visitor-focused communications, program offerings and outreach. Among the most notable efforts bridging between scientists at UT and ordinary Texans is the reopening of what was the Texas Memorial Museum, now the Texas Science and Natural History Museum. The space now showcases people and discoveries from across the College of Natural Sciences and UT. During its first few months alone, the museum welcomed more than 50,000 visitors, hosted more than 200 tours for school and community groups and held over 30 private events.
Series for the community: College of Natural Sciences staff and faculty have played an active role in the many-pronged Year of AI campaign throughout 2024—with bold events, podcast series, media engagement and more. As another installation in the Texas Science Festival series is on the horizon, the college is planning lively talks and interactive events from around the college and around campus (in-person, as well as hybrid) to engage the public with the latest in science and technology from UT Austin.

Further Context

The original language for the College of Natural Sciences plan related to place was developed in 2022. Find details and past progress in the sections below.

Plans for Partnerships in Austin

We are embracing the growth and spirit of Austin by building and deepening partnerships across our rapidly growing, tech-driven capital city.

Technology Collaborations through Texas Robotics

This science and engineering partnership collaborates with area tech industry groups and Army Futures Command to advance robotics education and research in numerous areas including medicine, rehabilitation, transportation, drilling, manufacturing, energy, national security and space exploration.

Fighting a Virus with the COVID-19 Modeling Consortium

CNS scientists and students, in partnership with medical leaders, social scientists, engineers and researchers in the Texas Advanced Computing Center, are developing innovative models that advance the surveillance, forecasting and mitigation of pandemics like COVID-19. The consortium provides decision-support analyses for local, state and national leaders striving to protect the health and well-being of our society and have helped ensure Austin has the lowest fatality rate from COVID-19 of any major metro area.

New Pathways to High-Demand Careers

In partnership with Austin Community College, the College and its units are building new co-enrollment opportunities in biotechnology training and STEM teaching certification.

Plans for Public Engagement in Texas

We are embracing the growth and spirit of Texas by serving Texans across the state with science that enhances life, work, health and learning.

Expansion of the Texas Field Station Network

Field stations are portals for better understanding and protecting our world. With sites around the state, researchers will be able to create knowledge that leads to healthier lives through more sustainable and resilient sources of food, water and energy and world-changing scientific breakthroughs that promote the vibrancy of Texas and our planet.

Hosting a regular Texas Science Festival

Open to science enthusiasts everywhere, the Texas Science Festival offers opportunities for the community to learn about scientific discovery and explore topics relevant for our changing world.

Strategic Efforts in Public Engagement

CNS serves the people of Texas through many outreach units and programs. These programs are fundamental to UT’s aspiration of becoming the highest-impact public research university in the world. CNS is actively working to maximize its public engagement impact through improved college-wide strategy, coordination and communication across units and efforts. These include:
- Marine Science Institute and the Patton Marine Science Education Center
- McDonald Observatory and its Visitor Offerings
- Texas Science and Natural History Museum (previously Texas Memorial Museum)
- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- UT Nutrition Institute
- Science Under the Stars

Gateway to Campus for K-12 STEM Opportunities

In partnership with colleges and colleagues across campus, CNS has helped launch a new resource to help families, educators and youth connect to the university's offerings in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). The new website, called STEM Starts, helps users navigate different opportunities including STEM camps, workshops, tutoring, teacher professional development and more.

Earlier Progress Related to Place

Updates Prior to 2024

Preparing students for college-level STEM Success: As we continue to offer K-12 teachers, schools and students opportunities for STEM engagement via the STEM Starts website, the college also has played a leadership role in an ambitious new initiative with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to help students have essential college-readiness experiences in mathematics. This work is bringing together UT faculty and faculty from community colleges and high schools to develop and deploy large-scale, effective digital course materials that aim to help students—from high school through the community college and undergraduate years—succeed in math.
New efforts in public engagement: Having established a role for a college-wide assistant director for community engagement, new monthly gatherings of outreach staff and program leads are underway to ensure both resource-sharing and awareness among units working with the public. The University’s Wildflower Center deepened its research connections with the main campus, and the McDonald Observatory began outreach to K-12 schools in conjunction with two eclipses passing over Texas within a year.
Revitalizing and reopening spaces to welcome the science-interested public: Substantial investments were made in Texas Memorial Museum, which was renamed the Texas Science and Natural History Museum. Following a major overhaul, the museum reopened to the public in September 2023. In addition to the museum, the Patton Marine Science Education Center reopened to the public at the UT Marine Science Institute with new exhibits and offerings.
The Texas Science Festival: The free, public event, held every other year, has featured talks from notable authors and dozens of UT faculty, science outreach staff and friends of the college. The event attracted thousands to campus for live events and involved more than 18,000 people in free online programming.
Co-enrollment with Austin Community College: Two pilot programs are ongoing: the biotechnology training program and the STEM teacher preparation offering. In the latter case, UTeach Access students are instrumental in building the STEM teacher workforce as they pursue teaching certifications while studying science. Additionally, a new partnership with the ACC Army/Marines Software Factory considers new ways to bring high-demand workforce training to active-duty soldiers via the UT online master’s programs in Computing, Data Science, and Artificial Intelligence.
Texas Field Station Network: Texas now has one of the most ambitious and largest networks of field stations in the central United States, which will allow for critical insights into environmental changes and resource considerations unique to Texas. The college announced its largest-ever gift to support this initiative and hired a manager to oversee the network, based in the Biodiversity Center. After 2021, when the Wildflower Center joined the network with Stengl Lost Pines and Brackenridge Field Lab, the UT Marine Science Institute, White Family Outdoor Learning Center, McDonald Observatory and a planned Hill Country Field Station were announced as well.
Local external research collaborations advance, as the NSF awarded a pilot grant to university researchers collaborating with health leaders in the City of Austin and other external partners to establish a new Center for Pandemic Decision Science. Meanwhile, a university-wide Business for Innovation and Opportunity task force was led by Natural Sciences Dean David Vanden Bout and Cockrell School Dean Roger Bonnecaze.
With engineering, a new Robotics offering for undergraduates launched to help meet industry’s demands as well as students’ interest in robotics skill-building. The academic offering is available to students entering the university now.