Our Purpose

The Taft-Nicholson Center bridges the humanities, arts, and sciences in order to engage increasingly complex environmental issues. Through interdisciplinary collaboration, the Center fosters innovative scholarship, creative expression, and community partnerships that deepen understandings of the human relationship to the natural world.

Our Values

Community	Creativity	Stewardship	Scholarship	Reflection
We cultivate inclusive connections among students, scholars, artists, and local residents, recognizing that interdisciplinary voices enrich our collective learning.	We embrace the arts and humanities as powerful ways to imagine, express, and respond to environmental challenges.	We honor and protect the unique ecological and cultural landscapes of the Centennial Valley through sustainable practices and respect for place.	We advance rigorous and creative inquiry that strengthens ties between the University of Utah, regional communities, and global networks of knowledge and practice.	We value immersive, place-based experiences that encourage deep listening, self-awareness, and thoughtful action in the world.

 

Our Programs

Faculty Fellowships

Open to faculty members from across the University of Utah, Faculty Fellowships often dedicated time for research and writing towards academic and creative projects. Check out our research page to see some of the projects Fellows have undertaken in previous seasons, and see all of our previous Fellows, along with more details about the program, at our Faculty Fellows page.

Artists-in-Residence

Our Artist-in-Residence program draws artists from around the world to the Centennial Valley. Drawing inspiration from our unique surroundings, they spend between one and six weeks on campus, creating art in any and all mediums. You can see details about all of our former Artists-in-Residence and learn more about how to apply on our Artists-in-Residence page.

Classes and Groups

We spend the summer hosting groups, events, and classes on campus, providing restful space for groupwork, retreats, courses, or other kinds of engagement. The Centennial Valley offers a beautiful landscape in which to collaborate, explore, and learn. You can find out more and apply on our Classes and Groups page.

 

Our Campus

The Center is housed in historically significant buildings that were originally part of Lakeview, Montana. The Centennial Valley provides an unprecedented oasis for learning, research, creativity, and collaboration. The Montana Natural Heritage Program has rated the Centennial Valley as one of the most significant natural landscapes in Montana, a tribute to its intact ecological systems, expansive wetlands, diverse native fauna and flora, and concentrations of rare species. Visitors to the Center have unparalleled opportunities to explore, study, and create in a singular wilderness area with diverse ecosystems.

The Center was made possible the generous and visionary work of the Tafts and the Nicholsons. John and Melody Taft and Bill and Sandi Nicholson invested their time and resources, purchasing Lakeview and lovingly restoring its unique and historic buildings. The result is our beautiful campus: accommodations include charming and elegant guest cabins, a student dormitory, a large conference room, and a dining hall where guests can engage in lively conversation while sharing a wonderful meal over the wide vistas of the Centennial Valley.

You can learn more about all of our facilities and accommodations on our Campus page.

 

Our History

Learn about what it was like to build Lakeview back up into the state in which we live in (and love!) it today.

The Centennial Valley

The Centennial Valley is a critical part of the Montana National Heritage Program. Its intact ecological systems, expansive wetlands, diverse wildlife and flora, and unique concentrations of rare species make it one of the most significant landscapes in Montana. The Centennial Mountains tower over the south side of the valley. The foothills of the Gravelly Mountain range are to the north. The Centennials are one of the few ranges within the Rockies that run from east to west, rather than north to south.

Covered mostly by Douglas fir, the Centennial Mountains provide a critical high-elevation corridor for a variety of wildlife including wolves, bears, and wolverines. In addition, the Centennial Valley holds to the largest wetland complex in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The Red Rock River flows through the broad and flat valley floor, feeding the Upper and Lower Red Rock Lakes. Streams throughout the wetlands draw fly fisherman to their varied fish populations including the Arctic Grayling and the Westslope Cutthroat Trout. 

The Valley is also home to the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, established as the Red Rock Lakes Migratory Waterfowl Refuge in 1935. The Refuge was instrumental in the recovery of the once-critically endangered trumpeter swan. In 1935, only 69 trumpeter swans were known to exist anywhere in the world; populations are now over 60000. You can learn more about the Refuge and their work in the Valley (along with our research and other ongoing efforts in our community) on our Research page.