{"id":62612,"date":"2024-12-03T07:50:01","date_gmt":"2024-12-03T12:50:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=62612"},"modified":"2024-12-08T19:19:29","modified_gmt":"2024-12-09T00:19:29","slug":"cave-dwellers-utc-alums-share-their-raccoon-mountain-caverns-tales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2024\/12\/cave-dwellers-utc-alums-share-their-raccoon-mountain-caverns-tales\/","title":{"rendered":"Cave dwellers: UTC alums share their Raccoon Mountain Caverns tales"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Jasmin

Jasmin Barton-Holt first moved to Chattanooga to work in Raccoon Mountain Caverns before enrolling at UTC (photo courtesy of Jasmin Barton-Holt).<\/p><\/div>\n

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga\u2019s recent gift acquisition of Raccoon Mountain Caverns marks a new chapter in research opportunities for both faculty and students.<\/p>\n

This underground laboratory\u2014rich with geological formations, unique ecosystems and untouched sections\u2014offers an unparalleled environment for study and exploration.<\/p>\n

More than just an underground playground, the caverns will serve as a hands-on educational resource, providing UTC with a distinctive asset for expanding scientific inquiry and interdisciplinary collaboration.<\/p>\n

While this acquisition opens new doors for the University, it\u2019s not a new story for UTC students and researchers who have already delved into the wonders of the cave. Over the years, numerous students have conducted research or taken up roles in managing and exploring the caverns, gaining valuable real-world experience that has shaped their careers.<\/p>\n

Here are some of their stories.<\/p>\n

\"Dylan

Dylan Ripley met his wife, Mona, at a UTC Marching Band camp. The couple took pictures during an Oct. 4, 2015, visit to Raccoon Mountain Caverns (photos courtesy of Dylan Ripley).<\/p><\/div>\n

Geology and exploration<\/em><\/h4>\n

Dylan Ripley, who received a geology degree from UTC in 2015, has fond memories of his time working at Raccoon Mountain Caverns.<\/p>\n

Now employed as a geologist-in-training at Stantec\u2019s Environmental Sciences Gulf Region, Ripley \u201cspends his days in the field, leading a team to collect soil and groundwater samples.\u201d<\/p>\n

His role is pivotal in \u201censuring everybody\u2019s collecting quality data in a safe way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For Ripley, working at Raccoon Mountain Caverns during his undergraduate days offered a unique blend of fun and hands-on geology experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a great experience to work with your colleagues at school. We were professional, but we were also still students,\u201d he said. \u201cSome of my fondest memories and friends were made while working there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cave has a special place in my heart, and I\u2019m glad to hear that the pursuit of knowledge will lead to the cave\u2019s stewardship.\u201d<\/p>\n

With UTC now acquiring the caverns, he believes this change will ensure the cave\u2019s future is in good hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s the best thing for the cave. Caves are a super integral part of our water cycle and we need to take care of them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As for future generations of UTC students, he sees immense potential for growth and discovery.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great opportunity for these students to have that space to explore and learn in a controlled environment,\u201d he said. \u201cI think it would be good for the discipline of speleology in particular. Maybe more students would pursue that discipline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ripley reminisced as he talked about the quieter moments he spent exploring the cave\u2019s natural beauty.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really loved seeing all the creatures that lived in there because \u2026 really, caves are a place where humans don\u2019t exist. They should not be there,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not for human beings, but seeing the salamanders\u2014cave salamanders, slimy salamanders, spring salamanders\u2014that was always a highlight.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cave helped me manage stress, interact with people and build confidence. I cherish my time working at the cave. It was a great experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"

Justice Johnson and Hannah Andrews (photo courtesy of Hannah Andrews)<\/p><\/div>\n

Lessons from beneath the surface<\/em><\/h4>\n

For Hannah Andrews, Raccoon Mountain Caverns was more than just a workplace or a research site\u2014it became a formative experience that shaped her career.<\/p>\n

Andrews, who graduated from UTC in 2022 with a degree in environmental geology, began working at the caverns in 2021, leading walking tours for the public and introducing visitors to both the history and science of the cave.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d take groups of 15 or so into the cave, pointing out all the critters\u2014both the fossilized and the living ones,\u201d said Andrews, who is now a watershed representative for TVA.<\/p>\n

As her experience grew, so did her responsibilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce I graduated, I started doing the wild cave tours where you go further back into the cave and really get muddy,\u201d she said. \u201cYou get to know people really well when you go caving with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cCaving can be very dangerous. There was one time that I got stuck in the cave,\u201d she said, laughing, \u201cbut it just brought me closer to that cave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andrews\u2019 connection to the caverns extended beyond her role as a guide. As an undergraduate, she conducted research at the site\u2014inspired by the work of her friend Jasmin Barton-Holt.<\/p>\n

Barton-Holt had identified elevated levels of nitrates in the cave\u2019s water, which can sometimes indicate pollution. Andrews took the research further by exploring not only the cave\u2019s surface pools but also formations deeper within the caverns.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy project was just seeing if pollutants on the surface were also found deeper in the cave\u2014and if the surface waters were making their way into the cave\u2019s ecosystem,\u201d Andrews said. \u201cIt was a really fascinating process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andrews admitted getting a tad emotional when she learned Raccoon Mountain Caverns was being donated to UTC.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this is awesome. I cried when I found out UTC got ownership of the cave,\u201d she recalled. \u201cThere are so many research possibilities for students to take on in the future. There are very strange formations, so many little animals, so many fossils. That cave is fascinating for both speleology and geology.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said that the caverns will now serve as a laboratory for biology, geology, environmental science and other fields.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much potential. It\u2019s not just a cave; it\u2019s a living laboratory that can help students understand ecosystems, formations and even pollutants,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love this cave, but Jasmin moved specifically to Chattanooga to work in that cave. She\u2019ll have a whole lot more to say about it. She really loves it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Jasmin

Jasmin Barton-Holt said one of the highlights of her undergraduate days was conducting research in the caverns for her senior thesis (photo courtesy of Jasmin Barton-Holt).<\/p><\/div>\n

A cave runs deep has a deeper meaning<\/em><\/h4>\n

Jasmin Barton-Holt\u2019s connection to Raccoon Mountain Caverns runs deep, far beyond her time as a student at UTC.<\/p>\n

In fact, it was her childhood experience at the caverns that sparked her passion for geology, leading to a degree in the field from UTC in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to be a geologist, but when I was maybe 11 or 12, I was living in Jackson, Tennessee, and I kind of was stuck between knowing I wanted to be some type of scientist, but I didn\u2019t know where,\u201d said Barton-Holt, now a professional geologist for S&ME, a civil engineering firm. \u201cI got invited to join a Venturing crew\u2014which is essentially coed Boy Scouts\u2014and we went on a camping trip, driving all the way from Jackson to Chattanooga. We got to stay the night in the cave\u2014and that\u2019s what really sparked my love of geology.\u201d<\/p>\n

Years later, after an unfulfilling freshman experience at another university, Barton-Holt felt the call of Chattanooga again\u2014this time without a clear plan but with a sense of adventure.<\/p>\n

\u201cI called up Raccoon Mountain Caverns one day, and I was like, \u2018Hey, are you guys hiring?\u2019 And they said yes. I got an interview, and I literally moved to Chattanooga to work at that cave before I even had a plan to move to UTC,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

Her experiences at the caverns laid the foundation for her academic journey and her current career.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking at the cave got me used to being comfortable with being uncomfortable,\u201d Barton-Holt recalled. \u201cIt helped me learn a lot about how to manage uncomfortable situations at work\u2014like having to slop through mud or dealing with bloody noses from dust I\u2019m inhaling.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I really grew as a person in that context, and it did prepare me for being in the field.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also led her to the UTC geology program.<\/p>\n

She said one of the highlights of her undergraduate days was conducting research in the caverns for her senior thesis, collaborating with fellow geology student Landon Courtney; Barton-Holt focused on the geochemistry of the cave\u2019s water while Courtney looked for microplastics.<\/p>\n

Beyond academic research, she also had a deep understanding of the caverns\u2019 history, having written informational scripts for tours and even training guides for crawling tours.<\/p>\n

Barton-Holt was asked her thoughts about the caverns now being operated by her alma mater.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cave deserves respect from a scientific point of view that I don\u2019t think it was getting,\u201d she said, \u201cand I think switching gears to being more respectful to the environment is going to be really, really good for the cave itself and also for the community around it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Michael

Michael Schoonover, who performed grant-funded research at Raccoon Mountain Caverns during the 2015-2016 academic year, is now a physician assistant based in Knoxville (photo courtesy of Dr. David Giles).<\/p><\/div>\n

Unearthing confidence<\/em><\/h4>\n

Michael Schoonover, who received a bachelor\u2019s degree in biology from UTC in 2016, performed grant-funded research at Raccoon Mountain Caverns during the 2015-2016 academic year with UTC microbiologist David Giles.<\/p>\n

Schoonover, who later earned a Master of Physician Assistant Studies from Wingate University in North Carolina, is now a physician assistant based in Knoxville, Tennessee.<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his time at UTC, Schoonover said that his undergraduate years were filled with hands-on research and academic accomplishments as he gravitated from organic chemistry to microbiology.<\/p>\n

He said getting the opportunity to do research at Raccoon Mountain Caverns under Giles\u2019 guidance was a transformative experience for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the first time, I had felt like I belonged in this realm of academics, of being a true expert in this specific field of science that very few others honestly have explored,\u201d Schoonover said. \u201cIt gave me confidence that I never had in academics before\u2014and that confidence is what drives my critical thinking in advanced science to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The research itself, titled \u201cA Survey of Bacterial Biodiversity and Lipid Content within Raccoon Mountain Caverns,\u201d presented him with rare and unforgettable experiences, as the challenges of working in such an extreme environment required a multidisciplinary approach with the Department of Chemistry and Physics, \u201cwhich taught me the importance of collaboration across different scientific fields.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cWhen it comes to studying a specific environment, especially these extreme environments like caverns, it really is multidisciplinary because you need so many experts from so many different fields to truly understand the environment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Schoonover also shared some of his more adventurous moments during his time in the caverns.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou definitely can\u2019t forget about the guys hanging from the ceilings because I almost whacked my head on one once or twice,\u201d he said with a laugh, referring to the bats living in the cave. \u201cYou have mammals in those caves, too, and they contribute to the nutrients that these microbes rely on. You get into invertebrate zoology as well because all of them are going to be contributing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back, Schoonover credited his research at Raccoon Mountain Caverns as foundational to his professional success.<\/p>\n

\u201cI truly do thank Dr. Giles, and I thank that research project every time I go to work to help my patients, because it gave me essential skills to succeed in what I\u2019m doing today,\u201d he said. \u201cIt helped build that critical thinking and that understanding that you need to have to be working in fields of advanced science.\u201d<\/p>\n

Learn more<\/h4>\n

Visit UTC<\/a><\/p>\n

Raccoon Mountain Caverns gifted to UTC<\/a><\/p>\n

Deep discoveries: How UTC\u2019s acquisition of Raccoon Mountain Caverns will shape (under)groundbreaking research<\/a><\/p>\n

Exploring the depths: How an underground UTC research experience shaped an academic journey<\/a><\/p>\n

UTC Biology, Geology and Environmental Science<\/a><\/p>\n

How to apply<\/a><\/p>\n

Raccoon Mountain Caverns photos courtesy of Jasmin Barton-Holt<\/h4>\n
\"Photo

Photo credit: Hussain Aljoher<\/p><\/div>\n

\"IMG_5504\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
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UTC’s recent gift acquisition of Raccoon Mountain Caverns marks a new chapter in research opportunities for both faculty and students, but it\u2019s not a new story for UTC students and researchers who have already delved into the wonders of the cave. Over the years, numerous students have conducted research or taken up roles in managing and exploring the caverns.<\/p>\n

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