LITTLE ROCK ROCKS!: PLACE-BASED FIELD EXPERIENCES IN AND AROUND THE CAPITAL CITY OF ARKANSAS

The geology in and around Little Rock, Arkansas, located at the convergence of the Ouachita Mountains, Mississippi River Alluvial Plain, and West Gulf Coastal Plain physiographic provinces, showcases a unique combination of lithologies, depositional environments, geologic structures, and geologic history. Additionally, these regional rocks and sediments are pierced by the presence of unusual, alkaline-rich igneous intrusives that have been chemically-weathered to produce mineable aluminum deposits. Despite this diverse and accessible geologic setting, our undergraduate students, many of whom grew up and live in Central Arkansas, have had little to no exposure to the fascinating geology story of this place they call home. As part of our introductory geology courses, we run half-day field trips to visit several locations within the Little Rock metropolitan area that challenge our students to think about deep time, past environments, the building of mountains through plate tectonics, the eruption and erosion of long disappeared volcanoes, and the extraction of valuable resources from the Earth. Here we highlight the geological diversity of these field trip locations, and discuss the variety of approaches our faculty use to teach and engage our students during these interactive, place-based field experiences.