Author Archives: castanea

Dendrology Lab Numbers?

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For generations of forestry students dendrology has been an important rite of passage, and an important first subject. Every forester needs to know what kind of trees are in the forest! Dendrology is the science of identifying the species of tree based on leaves, bark, form, fruit, and flowers. It is a branch of systematic biology. Typically, students are expected to learn a hundred or so species of trees and shrubs with both common names and Latin or scientific names.

In most forest technology programs dendrology is taught largely in outdoor  field labs, with a limited number of indoor class sessions. Recently, Brad Jones, of Itasca Community College, posed the question to CEFTS member instructors. How many students are allowed in each lab section. Here is a summary of his results.

College Location Lab Size Cap
UofM St. Paul, MN 25
SUNY – ESF Ranger School Wanakena, NY 16
Dabney/Lancaster Clifton Forge, VA 12
Hory-Georgetown Tech Georgetown, SC 14
UNH-Thompson School Durham, NH 14
Allegany College of Maryland Cumberland MD 12
Penn State Mont Alto, PA 15
Glenville State College Glenville, MV 25
Morrisville State College Morrisville, NY 20
Wayne Community College Goldsboro, NC -no cap-

Many of the respondents said that lab size was limited by the size of the van. For many, size was limited by the need to maintain good communication between the instructor and the students. Too big a lab makes this difficult. Efficiency is another consideration, too. Larger labs means that more students can be accommodated in few class sections.

Whatever the size, it is certain that dendrology will remain an important part of the curriculum.

At the Cradle of Forestry

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During the CEFTS meeting we visited the Cradle of Forestry in the Pisgah National Forest for the business meeting, lunch, and a tour of the Forestry School.

Outside the Perkins Meeting Room, Doug Staiger told us the story of the display cabinet. It contains artifacts from Carl Schenck donated by his family. The cabinet was built by a student from Haywood Community College and  paid for by CEFTS. It was dedicate during the CEFTS meeting in 1998. The wood had been donated by the Biltmore Estate from trees planted by Schenck’s students.

 

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20150717_154351Top right: portrait of Scheck and model of a cabin from the school. Top right: the dedication plaque. Bottom: the display cabinet.

 

 

New B.A.S. Degree at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

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Students measuring trees for forest inventoryLast month, after some three years of planning, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved ABAC’s request to offer a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.S.) degree in Natural Resource Management (NRM) with separate majors in Forestry and in Wildlife Management.   This degree is fundamentally different from the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree offered by universities in that the Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree is the foundation for the baccalaureate degree.  Our students go through the appropriate A.A.S. degree program (Forest Technology or Wildlife Technology) on their way to the desired BAS-NRM major (Forestry or Wildlife Management).

Students who target a standard B.S. program typically take few if any forestry or wildlife courses the first two years.  After completing their Associate of Science (A.S.) degree, if they are unable to continue on for the B.S. degree they have only a generic associate’s degree which has not specifically prepared them to work in the natural resource field.  The failure to continue on for the B.S. degree may be due to financial considerations, or may be the result of failure to achieve the minimum grade point average (GPA) for transfer to a university program.  In our state, the minimum GPA for entrance to the Warnell School of Forestry & Natural Resources at the University of Georgia has risen substantially in recent years as the University practices “population control” through rising admission standards.  Warnell is unable to admit many students that they would like to have, and in the past these students have had no other in-state path to a baccalaureate degree in the field of natural resources.

We think that our BAS degree is attractive for the following reasons.  If students in the BAS-NRM program decide to enter the workforce after the first two years, they have a marketable degree (AAS in Forestry or Wildlife) that is prized by employers and prepares them for a career in their chosen field.  If they do continue on for the BAS degree they have had the same “hands-on” field-oriented education that employers have always appreciated in our AAS graduates.

Students in Forest Technology or Wildlife Technology programs at other institutions are welcome to apply to ABAC to pursue the BAS-NRM degree.  Those coming from Southern Regional Education Board undergraduate Academic Common Market states (Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware,  Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia) should be able to attend at in-state tuition rates.  Those from other states may be able to get an out-of-state tuition waiver (and thus pay tuition at in-state rates), especially if they are excellent students.  We would be glad to work out articulation agreements with any institutions that are interested.

Forest technology students at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

Dr. Rod Brown, Head
Department of Forest Resources

Degree Flowchart

University of New Hampshire Forest Technology Student Wins Granite State SAF Award

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This is from a University of New Hampshire, Thompson School press release:

Nicholas Haskell is the recipient of the Granite State Division of the Society of American Foresters Forest Technology Student of the Year Award.
The second year class in the Forest Technology program recently attended the annual meeting of the Granite State Division of the Society of American Foresters. It was a great opportunity for the students to hear the latest topics on forestry here in the northeast. The students also made contacts with forestry professionals who work throughout the state. These contacts are certain to be valuable once the students begin their careers in the forestry profession.
Each year, the Granite State Division of the Society of American Foresters selects one student to be the recipient of the Forest Technology Student of the Year Award. This year Forest Technology senior Nicholas Haskell received this award. He is an excellent student, a leader in the classroom and exemplifies the spirit of the award.
Nick is from Brattleboro, Vermont and comes to the school with a background in forestry work in his high school vocational program. His hard work and dependability set the standard for the classroom. In addition to his accomplishments in the classroom, he works part time for the Forest Technology program and also finds time to be heavily involved with the UNH Woodsmen Team.
Last Summer Nick was employed by Cersosimo Lumber Company in Brattleboro. His work there provided a valuable opportunity to learn about the forest products industry. His goals after graduation from the Thompson School include a season or two on a western fire crew. Nick also plans to continue his education by earning a baccalaureate degree in Forest Management.

Click here to see the full story.

Welcome

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Welcome to the new CEFTS web page. I will gradually move content over from the old site.
And I will redirect to this new folder from the old one, too.