News

CRASR’s team participated in Keep Waco Beautiful’s Trash Dash and Bash April 11, 2026.

Robert Doyle was honored by the City of Waco February 17, 2026, for his work in establishing the Waco Wetlands. 

Waco Mayor Jim Holmes proclaimed Feb. 17, 2026, as Robert Doyle Day, recognizing the Baylor University researcher for his decades of service to Waco’s water systems. 

Baylor University, University of South Bohemia scientists measure bioaccumulation in Czech Republic freshwater system above acceptable thresholds.

As communities enjoy the benefits of growth, how can they protect the natural resources needed to support increased demand, and meet future needs? Ryan McManamay helps communities manage growth without outgrowing their resources.

Fall semester has begun but here are some of the things that kept CRASR outreach busy over Summer 2025!

CRASR’s SciKids after-school science club from South Waco Community Center made a field trip to the Baylor Sciences Building on April 16th

5th graders in Texas learn about the water cycle and CRASR staff recently helped 90 5th graders at a local school make connections to local groundwater and surface water sources.

CRASR had a busy summer hosting and collaborating in many outreach activities.  Thank you to all our partners and participants. It was a great summer.

CRASR hosted a Water Festival at Connally Jr. High.  About 80 students rotated through stations learning about groundwater, surface water, practicing their fishing skills, building a boat in an engineering challenge, making fish prints, and competing in the Wheel Of Water Trivia.  Many thanks to the wonderful volunteers who helped put the festival on, including from Baylor SACNAS and two local Texas Master Naturalist chapters!

Bryan W. Brooks, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Environmental Science and Biomedical Studies and director of the Environmental Health Science Program at Baylor University, has been elected to the rank of AAAS Fellow, announced today by the Council of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the Science family of journals.

Robert Doyle and Melissa Mullins were recognized by @neprisapp for virtually connecting with students nationwide! Giving students insight into their careers and professional paths has been a great (and easy) way to give back. Join us in inspiring the next generation!

CRASR, the City of Waco and the Mayborn Museum hosted a screening of Thirst for Power, a documentary that explores the energy-water nexus.

JB Smith Waco’s first-ever Green Communities Conference was held Wednesday at Baylor's BRIC facility.

Silver Spring, MD -- Continuing the tradition of placing early career professionals in Washington, D.C. federal government offices, NOAA and Sea Grant are pleased to announce the finalists for the 2023 class of the Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program. The 2023 class represents the largest in recent years with 86 finalists. Since 1979, over 1,550 fellows have completed the one-year Knauss fellowship program, applying their experience to lasting careers in science, policy, and public administration. 

Silver Spring, MD -- Continuing the tradition of placing early career professionals in Washington, D.C. federal government offices, NOAA and Sea Grant are pleased to announce the finalists for the 2023 class of the Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program.

CRASR volunteers, faculty, staff and students participated in STEMfest 2022 at the Mayborn Museum, along with many other community organizations.

The Teachers in State Parks program had a successful launch despite record-breaking heat.

Climate change is a complex topic that can be intimidating to teach.

CRASR joined other Baylor departments to celebrate Juneteenth at Waco’s celebration in Brazos Park East.

Explore your water with How’s My Waterway.Enter a location to find out about water quality anywhere in the US.

This summer, CRASR is participating in Village Wednesdays at the Mayborn Museum’s Historic Village on Wednesdays from 10 am to 12 noon.

CRASR faculty, staff and graduate students worked with Texas Sea Grant and the Matagorda Bay Foundation to host several days of teacher workshops in the Matagorda Bay area.

Around 80 students at Connally Jr. High participated in a CRASR Water Festival on May 20.

CRASR hosted a workshop for City of Waco Parks and Recreation Department staff to experience activities they can use to engage youth around water topics.

CRASR celebrated Earth Day by hosting a Waco Creek Clean-Up by the Baylor Science Building on Friday April 22nd.

Urban REAP (Renewable Energy and Agriculture Project), part of Mission Waco, hosted CRASR’s water fest for a community day on April 9th.

CRASR Intern Lindsay Ross lead Girl Scouts Brownies and Juniors through a Water Engineering Challenge at the Central Texas STEMfest. Over 75 participants were in attendance at the 10th annual event- CRASR has participated every year since it began!

CRASR is accepting applications for the Matagorda Bay B-WET teacher professional development to be held June 8-10 2022 in Palacios TX. The workshop is a hands-on field experience and offers great participation incentives for teachers. Check out the Matagorda B-WET Flyer or the details posted on the CRASR/Matagorda Bay webpage – applications close April 15!

CO-OP Program Awards More Than $2 Million in Grants to Texas Communities Community Outdoor Outreach Program (CO-OP) Diversifies Audiences Engaged with the Outdoors AUSTIN – Communities in Texas will have more opportunities to explore their natural surroundings thanks to grants awarded through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Community Outdoor Outreach Program (CO-OP). These 41 grant partnerships, totaling $2,048,678, will support community-based conservation and outdoor recreation activities throughout the state and build on $22 million already awarded by TPWD over the past 25 years.

The Heart of Texas chapter is now taking applications for the 2022 Master Naturalist class. Class Limit: 25 Deadline to apply is March 15, 2022

Twenty six students from Dr. McManamay's watershed assessment class earned their Texas Stream Team Citizen Science Standard Core certification today, Saturday February 19 at the Baylor Science Building.

by Melissa Mullins CRASR scientists and students celebrated World Wetlands Day (which happens on Feb 2nd every year) at a Meet the Scientist event at the Mayborn Museum.

By Megan Hale | Reporter Baylor’s Center for Reservoir and Aquatic Systems Research (CRASR) has greatly impacted both the Baylor and Waco communities by providing students and faculty with opportunities to make their mark on the world, in the lab and outside the classroom.

Freshwater Biological Association, Ambleside, Cumbria Statement on Climate Change in Freshwaters

CRASR participated in Sic ‘Em Science Day at the Mayborn Museum. Museum visitors examined organisms from the Brazos River behind the museum and learned about aquatic science at Baylor.

CRASR partnered with Keep Waco Beautiful, Baylor Outdoor Adventure and Facilities to sponsor a clean-up of Waco Creek near the Baylor Sciences Building. Baylor students, faculty and staff who participated removed over 1,000 lbs of trash from the creek. Unfortunately, whenever it rains more litter and debris enters the creek. CRASR plans to host clean-ups every semester and also sponsor efforts to promote best practices to keep litter out of the creek.

CRASR participated in Imagine a Day Without Water, a national campaign that asks everyone to consider what their day would be like if they couldn’t turn on the tap and get clean drinking water (as is the case in many parts of the world and also in more communities in the U.S. than we would like) or if you flushed your toilet and wastewater didn’t go anywhere.

CRASR staff spent two days at an area Junior High school helping 6th-8th grade students learn how to use water quality test kits and benthic macroinvertebrates to assess stream health of the stream and river closest to their school.

October 08, 2021 – [Waco] – Today, Baylor University’s Center for Reservoir and Aquatic Systems Research (CRASR) joins elected officials, water utilities, community leaders, educators, and businesses from across the country as part of the seventh annual Imagine a Day Without Water, a nationwide day of education and advocacy about the value of water.

Community-based learning strengthens the connection between schools and the surrounding community, therefore increasing community engagement for participating students and making learning more meaningful (Prast and Viegut 2016). Connected Science Learning July-August 2021 (Volume 3, Issue 4) By Suzanne Nesmith, Charlie Walter, Sandi Cooper, Cole Matson, Tisha Emerson, Melissa Mullins, Julia Daniel, and Paul Martens

Check out this recent publication in Ecology and Evolution that used genomic and survey information to establish conservation units to promote recovery of two threatened freshwater mussel species, the Texas Heelsplitter (Potamilus amphichaenus) and Brazos Heelsplitter (Potamilus streckersoni). Image credit: Chase Smith, used with permission.

Join CRASR at the Mayborn Museum for Meet the Scientist (Sun Sept. 26) and Sic ‘Em Science Day (Sat Oct. 23rd). We’ll be doing hands-on activities focused on water in our community and the Brazos River! Image credit: Melissa Mullins, used with permission.

CRASR faculty and staff conducted a professional development workshop in June in the Matagorda Bay to interact with high school teachers about engaging their students with water resources in their communities. Image credit: Stephanie Wong, used with permission

Heart of Texas Master Naturalists assist Baylor Biology Ph.D. candidate Sunshyne Hendrix at the Baylor Experimental Aquatic Research (BEAR) mesocosm facility at the Lake Waco Wetlands. Her research helps us understand the flood tolerance of wetland plants, including aggressive species such as cattails (Typha sp.) Image credit: Nora Schell, used with permission

CRASR hosted a Water Festival in June at the South Waco Library. Water Festivals are a great way for all ages to learn about water in our community- contact us if you are in the Waco area and are interested in partnering on a water festival! Image credit: Melissa Mullins, used with permission.

Even the littlest learners were engaged at the Mayborn Museum’s Exploring Water Mini Monday event in July. Image Credit: Melissa Pennington, used with permission.

Lake Waco makes US history in eradicating the invasive zebra mussel in a new fairly simple and effective way.