A newsletter of the School of Forestry and Natural Resources at Paul Smith’s College

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BRANCHING OUT Fall/Winter 2010-11

Letter From the Interim Dean

IN THIS ISSUe:Faculty updates 2

Field notes 2

Seal of approval 4

I’ve taught aerial photo, GPS, and remote sensing courses at

Paul Smith’s College for five years — but the last eight months have given me my closest look yet at the exciting work that’s done here every day.

Last summer, I stepped into the role of interim dean of the School of Forestry and Natural Resources when Andy Egan left to take another challenge at New Mexico Highlands University. Since then, I’ve seen how many of our projects and programs make us truly special. As the enrollment at many forestry schools declines and some schools are ending their forestry programs, our

enrollment is not only strong but steadily increasing. It is clear that the experiential brand of hands-on for-estry we teach here is in high demand.

One of the biggest developments of the past semester has been ac-creditation from the Society of Ameri-can Foresters (SAF) — a designation that can only further strengthen our program. You can read more about that, and other news from our faculty and students, in this newsletter.

A nationwide search is ongoing to find a permanent dean, and we hope to have the position filled by July. In the meantime, though, please feel free to contact me. I’d love to hear

what you are doing and how your Paul Smith’s education is serving you.

Jeff Waltonjwalton@paulsmiths.edu

Seal of approval SAF ACCREdItS FOREStRY PROGRAMSSchool of Forestry & Natural ResourcesP.O. Box 265, Paul Smiths, NY 12970-0265

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PAIDUtica, NY

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In december 2010, four of our forestry B.S. programs were awarded accreditation by the Society of American

Foresters (SAF). this is a major mile-stone for us: It puts those programs on an even footing with our closest competitors and the nation’s top for-estry programs, and is especially important when we tell our story to prospective students and their parents. the designation was awarded

after a five-year process that culminated in a three-day site visit by SAF representatives in April 2010. Representatives from Paul Smith’s, in turn, went to Albuquerque in October to participate in

a final review before the SAF. Accreditation signifies that our programs

meet minimum quality standards set forth by the SAF. Additionally, our gradu-ates benefit from a streamlined

process when they seek designa-tion as certified foresters from the SAF.

Jeff Walton

/ Nine fisheries and wildlife sciences students volunteered at a

moose-check station for the U.S. Fish

and Wildlife Service and the Vermont

Fish and Wildlife

department during

hunting season.

they weighed and

measured more

than 100 moose

and removed ova-

ries from females

while on duty.

Project leader

Cedric Alexander

said “the students

from Paul Smith’s

were very hard working, enthusiastic,

pleasant company, and overall a

tremendous help.”

FNRR FIeLD NOTeS CONtINUEd FROM PAGE 3

First-year student Jenna Daub is a gung-ho volunteer at a Vermont moose check station.

? Eleven junior fisheries and wildlife sciences students participated in the

fall field meeting of the New York

chapter of the Wildlife Society at Ft.

drum. the theme of the meeting

was “A Wetland Primer for Wildlifers”

and was designed for both wildlife

students and professionals. Morning

lectures by wildlife professionals who

specialize in wetlands were followed

with a working lunch, during which

time professionals gave career advice

to students, and afternoon visits to

field sites on Ft. drum.

/ Students in Prof. Brett McLeod’s Advanced Silviculture course created

a landscape-scale management plan for Partridge Park, a 1,400-acre estate

outside Paul Smiths owned by hospitality-industry executive Paul Avery.

this project offered many unique learning opportuni-

ties including working with a local landowner

with diverse objectives, incorporating the

science of silviculture in a practical

situation, and synthesizing skills

from multiple disciplines.

the management plan

resulted in the property

receiving certification

under the American

tree Farm System.

Cobleskill in October. they toured the

fish and wildlife facilities on campus

including the specimen holdings

(pickled fish and amphibians as well as

an entire room devoted to taxidermied

waterfowl) and the live hatcheries.

Bellerose and Mason met with a

group of female wildlife biologists

and Cobleskill students. they were

impressed with the range of duties

and responsibilities represented by the

wildlife professionals who attended,

including the director of fish, wildlife and

marine resources for the dEC and rep-

resentatives from the U.S. department

of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service and the New York

State department of transportation.

? Jon Preston ’10 (fisheries and

wildlife sciences-wildlife) took the

silver medal at the Stihl timbersports

Collegiate Championship in Salem, Ore.,

in August 2010. In addition to his silver

medal, Jon also left Oregon with the

collegiate stock saw title.

? In an agreement with the USdA

Forest Service, historic records from

the Paul Smith’s Experimental Forest

were sent to the National Archives in

September to be digitized. the records,

including original maps and forest

inventory data, will soon be available

to Forest Service scientists and the Paul

Smith’s community through the Joan

Weill Adirondack Library’s website.

FNRR FIeLD NOTeS

? Nine students and Profs. Sally Bogdanovitch and Joe Orefice

attended the New York Society of

American Foresters (SAF) conference

held in Syracuse in January. Orefice

presented about Paul Smith’s forestry

program. An alumni reception held at

the conference drew 16 past graduates.

? Stirling Tomkins, a long-time

supporter of Paul Smith’s College and

our forestry programs, recently con-

tributed an additional $100,000 to the

international travel endowment that he

established in 2005. tomkins is a fervent

advocate of students participating in

study abroad and cross-cultural

enrichment opportunities.

? John dillon Park’s wheelchair-

accessible lean-tos were mentioned

in a december 2010 article in

Conservationist, the magazine of the

New York State department of

Environmental Conservation (dEC).

dillon Park, operated by Paul Smith’s

and managed by Stephen Ellis ’07,

provides wilderness camping experi-

ences for people with disabilities. It is

named for dillon, a class of 1958

graduate and former chairman and

CEO of International Paper.

? Prof. David Patrick taught a group

research capstone course in fall 2010

that incorporated his amphibian

research. Students collected data as

part of a study involving 20 heated,

1,000-gallon cattle tanks. Various

temperature scenarios were used to

test the survival ability of mink frogs to

terrestrial and aquatic habitat change.

Working together, the students wrote

up the results, which will be submitted

to a scientific journal.

? Alexander Smith, an arboriculture

and forestry student, recently won a

nationally competitive scholarship from

davey tree Expert Company for $1,000.

? In October, students in the Paul Smith’s SAF Student Chapter attended

a joint New England-New York student

conclave in Petersham, Mass. Attendees

met other students from the region and

discussed ways to improve their own

chapters. the conclave was featured in

the March issue of the Forestry Source,

SAF’s newsletter. the 2011 conclave will

be held at Paul Smith’s.

? A group of fisheries and wildlife sciences students were trained to age

deer by dEC biologist Ed Reed. they

then collected data for their future

capstone projects at a check station

they voluntarily started at the

intersection of Routes 86 and 30 across

from the entrance to campus.

? Nicole Bellerose and Heather Mason (fisheries and wildlife

sciences) attended the Women in

Wildlife networking event at SUNY-

SFNR FACULTy UPDATeS? Andrew Egan, former professor and dean,

co-authored a paper published in the december

2010 issue of the Journal of Forestry: “Challenges

to Sawmill Businesses in New England and

New York State: A Survey of Wood Procurement

Managers.”

. Orefice and Prof. Hans Michielen reported

that 81 face cords of firewood were delivered to

local needy families through the Brighton Food

Pantry—double the amount donated last year.

the wood originates as standing timber and is

cut and processed as part of the timber

Harvesting and Advanced Silviculture courses.

? Prof. Jorie Favreau brought students to

several conferences and workshops, including

a meeting of the New York State chapter of the

Wildlife Society and the Women in Wildlife

networking event at SUNY-Cobleskill.

? Instructor Brendan Jackson ’08 (recreation

resource management), who is currently instruct-

ing our Introduction to Forestry and Silviculture

courses, completed an internship with the

Northern Forest Canoe trail in summer 2010. As

a stewardship intern, Jackson was part of a crew

that worked on a variety of trail projects, such

as erosion prevention and the improvement of

waterside campsites, portage trails, and access to

launches along the 740-mile recreational water-

way. He also led waterway work trips in New York,

Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. (Source:

northernforestcanoetrail.org)

? Adjunct instructor Tim Chick has given pre-

sentations about right-of-way management and

pesticide application to statewide workshops,

and participated in the New York State Urban

and Community Forest Council. He also pub-

lished an article in the december 2010 Arborist

News: “Allelopathy as a Biological Control for

Integrated Vegetation Management.”

SFNR FACULTy UPDATeS

? In March, Prof. Brett McLeod ’03 visited the

dominican Republic to plan a joint eco-tourism

initiative with Escuela Nacional Forestal

(ESNAFOR), the country’s national forestry school.

ESNAFOR, which has been described as being

similar to Paul Smith’s 50 years ago, recently

started a forest technology program.

/ In July 2010, McLeod helped launch the

Adirondack Woodsmen’s School. Prof. Joe

Orefice and students Rosie Santerre ’10 and

Tyler Rothe were also instructors. Students at

the school earned college credit for learning

traditional skills of the Adirondack woodsman,

such as chopping, birling and fire building.

through campfire lectures they learned the

history and lore known by every well-rounded

Adirondack lumberjack (or jill).

Last summer’s program featured a pair of

week-long sessions; this summer, a third week

will be added for students interested in competi-

tive lumberjack sports and advanced outdoor

skills. the school was featured in the New York

times, the Chicago tribune and Northern Wood-

lands magazine, to name a few. For more infor-

mation: www.paulsmiths.edu/woodsmenschool.

? Prof. Robert Kraatz attended the New York

State Association of Professional Land Surveyors

(NYSAPLS) Annual Conference in Verona, N.Y.,

in January. Several alumni attended a college-

sponsored reception at the conference.

? Prof. Joe Dadey received his Ph.d. from

SUNY-ESF in december 2010. His dissertation is

titled “Perspective-taking and its Implications for

Best Practices in Collaborative Governance: the

Oregon Wolf Conservation and Management

Plan Process.”

Peer-reviewed PaPers, book ChaPters, books and other aCComPlishments

Continued on Page 4

? twelve recreation,

adventure travel, and

eco-tourism (RAtE)

students joined Profs. Joe Dadey and Jeff Walton

on a 24-day expedition

to Guatemala and Belize

in January. Activities

included climbing a

13,000-foot volcano, a four-day

hike in the Guatemalan highlands, surfing in the Pacific Ocean,

whitewater rafting, cave exploration, and snorkeling along Belize’s barrier reef.

/ In November, a dozen fisheries and wildlife sciences students volunteered

at the dEC’s Adirondack fish hatchery in

Lake Clear, N.Y. they helped collect eggs

from fish that will be grown into the next

generation of the hatchery’s stock.

> Zak Saulsgiver

(forest technology)

achieved first place

at the 2010 Game

of Logging National

Competition in

Ohio on October 2.

Saulsgiver, from Westport,

N.Y., received a $1,000 prize,

a new chainsaw, and protective gear. He beat his father, a

professional arborist, who came in 5th at the annual skills competition.