GSAR's educational tours of the Gault Site and outreach programs inspire intellectual curiosity about humans in the past and how archaeological science helps reveal and interpret this ancient heritage. We aim to help people of all ages explore the past, and consider how our shared humanity connects to us today.
GSAR conducts primary research to understand the past, with a special interest in how the Peopling of the Americas fits into the global story of human expansion and development. Following in the footsteps of our founder, Dr. Michael B. Collins, we conduct exciting research that increases our education impact and creates conservation opportunities.
Through our educational and research efforts, we work to raise public awareness about the vital need to conserve non-renewable cultural heritage sites for the benefit of future generations.
The Gault site is a gem of Texas history! Investigations at the Gault site have helped establish that people were in the Americas as early as 20,000 years ago, far longer than many archaeologists had believed. Working with a team of scientists from many different disciplines, Dr. Michael B. Collins’ work has helped establish the antiquity of human presence in Central Texas specifically, and in the Americas generally. While this advance in the archaeological understanding of the past is highly significant, GSAR recognizes that one of the real contributions that the Gault Site can make is in helping students follow a similar journey of learning.
The education of both students of archaeology and the general public is one of the GSAR’s primary missions.
Over 2,300 people have volunteered with GSAR. In our lab alone volunteers have contributed over 13,000 hours of time helping to sort, wash, catalog, and even analyze the vast collections of cultural materials recovered from the Gault Site.
