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