OUR ROOTS
Historic FT Reno
BlueSTEM AgriLearning Center Facility
All of the proceeds from the Visitor’s Center admissions and events go towards restoring the historic buildings at Fort Reno. One of the buildings that was recently restored was the Commanding Officer’s Quarters which serves as the headquarters for the BlueSTEM AgriLearning Center. This building was first built in 1876 then it was remodeled in 1936 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Most recently, the exterior of the building was refurbished in 2012 by Historic Fort Reno, Inc. and then in 2014 received a federal grant to restore the interior.
Our Partners
BlueSTEM AgriLearning Center is an effort brought by Grazinglands Research Laboratory
The Grazinglands Research Laboratory (GRL) develops and delivers technologies, management strategies, and planning tools to evaluate and manage economic and environmental risks for integrated-crop-forage-livestock systems under variable climate, energy and market conditions. This research mission leverages diverse partnerships with federal, state, and local stakeholders.
Oklahoma Mesonet Station at Grazinglands Research Laboratory
The Oklahoma Mesonet is a world-class network of environmental monitoring stations. The network was designed and implemented by scientists at the University of Oklahoma (OU) and at Oklahoma State University (OSU).
The Oklahoma Mesonet consists of 120 automated stations covering Oklahoma. There is at least one Mesonet station in each of Oklahoma’s 77 counties.
At each site, the environment is measured by a set of instruments located on or near a 10-meter-tall tower. The measurements are packaged into “observations” every 5 minutes, then the observations are transmitted to a central facility every 5 minutes, 24 hours per day year-round.
Blue Thumb
Oklahoma’s Blue Thumb is a statewide citizen science program that trains volunteers to monitor creeks and streams and share their knowledge of water quality with others. The goal of blue Thumb is to empower people to protect water in the region from nonpoint source pollution.
Over 75 Oklahoma streams are being Monitored by Blue Thumb Volunteers. Blue Thumb aims to provide stream protection through education. They accomplish this by empowering citizens across the state to monitor a local stream and teach them how to educate others about Oklahoma’s water resources.
