USE OF READILY AVAILABLE ON-CAMPUS SUBSURFACE DATA TO TEACH ESSENTIAL GEOLOGICAL CONCEPTS AND SKILLS

Many geology programs are blessed with nearby or on-campus outcrops, facilitating straightforward instruction of fundamental geological skills, such as describing and measuring geological units, constructing columnar sections, and correlating geological units to produce cross sections and fence diagrams. Other programs, like several located along the U.S. Gulf Coast, have few, if any, local outcrops with which to work. Access to these practical teaching tools requires field trips, and all of the associated planning, expense, and risks. However, many geology professors might be surprised to find that there may be a treasure trove of subsurface data in their own backyard in the forms of geotechnical reports for building foundations and water-well installation reports. Such reports are commonly on file in the campus engineer or maintenance department office. These reports can include well cuttings and split-spoon core descriptions, professionally constructed geological columns and cross sections, and even geophysical well logs that can be cannibalized and apportioned out to students to instruct them in “real world” geological correlation and cross-section construction, and associated pitfalls. Establishing relationships with these on-campus data suppliers can even lead to opportunities for field training exercises as new geotechnical borings are drilled, cores are collected, and wells are installed. In these situations, students would get the chance to “sit” a well or boring and share in the types of field duties that many will eventually perform in entry-level professional positions. In addition to the obvious benefits for the students involved, arrangements can be made for data “splitting” so that a library of subsurface information (cores, cuttings, lithological samples, well logs, etc.) is amassed over time for future exercises.