Tree Care Industry Magazine, August 2005

By David Rattigan

When freshmen from the Stockbridge School at the University of Massachusetts arrive to work at their five-month internship with C.L. Frank and Company in Northampton, Mass., the company president doesn’t need to be sold on their background.

“Some interns have better habits and some are more serious than others,” says Christopher Frank. “But overall, these kids are as good if not better than anybody. We have a lot of friends in the industry who worked for us as interns and are still in this area – and still in the field.”

The Stockbridge School, located on the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Mass., campus, offers a two-year associates degree program in arboriculture that is both part of and distinctly separate from the university. After two years, students may go to work, or choose to continue their education in a four-year program in forestry, with a concentration in urban forestry. Students from the two-year program must apply to the university in order to be accepted into the four-year program.

Frank’s knowledge of the program runs deeper than just hiring newbies from the program. He himself is an alumnus of the Stockbridge School, and he was an intern for the only tree care company he’s ever worked for. The former Marine was hired full time by Frost & Higgins Tree Care Co. following his internship, and moved up the company ladder into a supervisory position and then sales. He was eventually offered the chance to purchase a branch of the company upon the owner’s retirement.

Frank’s sons also attended Stockbridge, and both are still employed by the people who were once their supervisors during their first-year internships. His son David O’Brien is an arborist with Lewis Tree, and son Billy Frank is an assistant golf course superintendent at the Wheatley Hill Golf Club on Long Island, N.Y.

“It’s a great way to learn in-depth, practical information that they can apply in the field,” Frank says. “Particularly with that first year internship, they’ll know by the end of the year if this field is what they want.”

The Stockbridge School of Agriculture hosts one of the most venerable arboriculture programs in the United States, dating back to 1894, when George E. Stone trained future tree wardens. It’s one-day “tree conference” for tree care professionals is held every March, going back to 1900.

Stockbridge is also a school that many will say is one of the most progressive and effective at turning out commercial tree care professionals. Its faculty has run educational seminars for the Tree Care Industry Association, and the school’s program coordinator, Professor H. Dennis Ryan III, has received queries from other institutions interested in the structure of his program for many years.

The curriculum features both the science and specialty programs that make a good arborist, but also requires coursework in business, including a course on commercial tree care. Supporters of the program – and there are many, including a loyal base of alumni – say that not only does the training turn out a better employee, but also an employee better prepared to move ahead in his (or her) career.

Industry surveys, including a Tree Care Industry Association membership survey, consistently point to a demand for, and lack of, qualified labor in U.S. tree care service businesses. Many companies are eager to hire an employee with experience gained through both the internships and in the Stockbridge “labs,” which are trees on the UMass campus in Amherst. With an academic background in business, Stockbridge grads also offer promise that they can grow into supervisory roles, sales jobs, and potentially manage or even own their own companies.

“We teach commercial tree care,” says Ryan, coordinator of the program for the past 23 years. Ryan added that, while a commercial tree care professional can discuss entomology, pathology, and the fine points of pruning, “he’s also aware that he’s got to pay the bills on Friday.” That real-world foothold is an important part of the Stockbridge perspective.

“I think our major strength is that we have faculty members who have worked for commercial tree care companies and municipalities,” explains Brian C.P. Kane, associate professor of commercial arboriculture. Kane, who fills the school’s first endowed chair – courtesy of fundraising done by the Massachusetts Arborists Association – has 10 years of experience in commercial tree care, in addition to advanced degrees in urban forestry. “They bring both practical experience and knowledge to the classroom, in addition to academic credentials. That translates to a better perspective in what’s going on in the real world. We do a good job in preparing students for the realities they’ll be facing after two or four years here.”

As mentioned earlier, the Stockbridge School offers a two-year associates degree program in arboriculture that is both part of and distinctly separate from the university. After two years, students may go to work, or choose to continue their education in a four-year program in forestry, with a concentration in urban forestry, offered by UMass at the Stockbridge School. Students from the two-year program must apply to the university in order to be accepted into the four-year program.

Between the two programs, the school graduates about 15 students each year. Several graduates have gone on to get their advanced degree, including some who’ve gotten a masters degree in Business Administration and others who have earned law degrees. “Big firms love somebody with a background in arboriculture and the law,” Ryan says.

Those who complete the two-year program have already received a solid education in commercial tree care, including a five-month paid internship (usually with a commercial tree care company) and a series of business courses, to go along with the technical knowledge of tree care. “They have eight credits in business before they graduate,” Ryan says, “which is pretty good at the two-year level.”

In the second semester, which follows the internship, students take an introductory course in marketing. In the third semester, they take a course in commercial tree care management, and in their final semester they take a course on managing people. Should the students enter the four-year program, they will take additional courses focused on communication skills (public speaking and writing) along with two business electives.

There is also considerable “lab work,” featuring climbing and pruning of campus trees. In “Introduction to Arboriculture” students are assigned their own personal trees, and will work their way through that tree using only a handsaw (no pole saws). “This way, they’ll find out real fast whether they like it or not,” Ryan says.

As many have learned over the years, not every arborist is good at or happy running his own company, but having a background in business, a Stockbridge School grad is better suited to start his own enterprise – particularly given new competitive pressures in the industry.

“To be successful, you’ve got to be technically proficient,” Ryan says. “You also have to know things like what it will cost for you to be in business, and you’ve got to have good communication skills.”

Most students will wind up taking jobs with commercial tree care companies, where they may benefit from the training, advancing in their career.

“They can go as far as they want,” Ryan insists. “As a young guy, they can climb trees and make a lot of noise. As they get older they can move into sales and management and make real good money.”

With declining budgets and a loss of open space, the number of forestry and parks jobs has shown a steady decline over several years, according to Department of Labor statistics. Commercial jobs are more abundant, and there are factors in place that lead those in the industry to believe that the business will remain strong as long as there are shrubs and trees in suburban and urban settings, according to Ryan and others. Like Kane, Ryan has an extensive background in commercial tree care, and both men retain working relationships with industry associations and businesses.

As one of the few two-year colleges offering degree credits in commercial arboriculture, the Stockbridge School seems to have set itself apart from other programs that educate tree care professionals, and gained fans in the industry.

“It is a great program,” says David Landry, plant health care coordinator for Tree Specialists, Inc. in Holliston, Mass., which also employs Stockbridge interns. “The students we’ve gotten from there have all been really good for us. This is a great way for them to learn what’s going on in the real world. They learn things they can apply when they get out into the real world themselves. When they do internships with us, we try to get them some experience in everything the company does, including exposure to business plans. The experience will get them better prepared.”

The two-year program is lauded for providing the kind of education that can benefit the commercial tree care industry by bringing better qualified workers to a field where finding and keeping quality employees is a perennial challenge. Among the Stockbridge boosters is the Tree Care Industry Association. TCIA feels that there is a need for this type of program to be replicated across the country, and is supporting such education efforts in the industry.

Mark Garvin, TCIA vice president of public policy and communications, noted that some European countries offer programs in tree care at vocational schools. However, while technical high schools in the United States may offer training in auto repair, cooking, electrical work, and other fields, very few have programs in arboriculture or forestry. Without programs to interest and train young people, the industry will naturally attract fewer workers – and fewer qualified workers. With programs similar to that at the Stockbridge School, new employees can progress more quickly, and develop work skills and safety habits that will be beneficial to both themselves and their companies. “People don’t suddenly decide to become tree care workers at 35 or 40,” Garvin says. “We have to attract people to the career path of arboriculture at 16, 18 and 21 years old. To get people interested in an outdoor career, it usually needs to happen when they’re young.”

Citing the TCIA 2004 Wage & Benefit Survey showing that supervisors make an average salary of $42,360, sales people average $56,580 and production/operations managers $62,320, Garvin makes the point that tree care can be a fulfilling career, something young people may never consider if they’re never exposed to it.

“We have to attract people and show them that there is a career path,” Garvin says. “This is not an industry where they’ll be making minimum wage for the rest of their lives, and not an industry where they can outsource your job to another country.” Ryan agrees. “Commercial tree care is inflation-proof,” he says. “The amount of work may go up and down depending on the economy, but if you’ve got a dead tree in your yard, it’s got to come down. There’ll always be work, because there are trees out there, and we’re the people who have got to do the work on them.”

David Rattigan is a freelance writer living in Peabody, Mass

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