Cleveland State Community College was honored as a 2009 Tree Campus USA College by the Arbor Day Foundation. With this award, Cleveland State becomes the first college or university in Tennessee and one of only 74 institutions across the nation to receive this designation.

The national Tree Campus USA program is an initiative that sprang from a partnership between the Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota Motors North America, Inc., to foster the development of the next generation of tree stewards.

The program is designed to award national recognition to college and university campuses and their surrounding communities for promoting healthy urban forest management and involving the campus community in environmental stewardship.

To be eligible for Tree Campus USA status, CSCC met five core standards of tree care and community engagement. These standards included establishing a campus tree advisory committee, evidence of a campus tree-care plan, verification of dedicated annual expenditures on the campus tree-care plan, involvement in an Arbor Day observance and implementation of a service learning project aimed at engaging the student body.

As a part of the service learning project, students in Robert Brewer’s biology class at Cleveland State mapped trees in designated areas on the campus. This information is used to determine growth and monitor changes since the previous mapping took place and is invaluable in the care and preservation of the trees.

“Trees are such a wonderful asset for our community neighborhoods, and one of the obvious benefits of the Tree Campus USA program is that it highlights their importance and helps people learn to care for them,” said Suzanne Bennett, horticulturist at Cleveland State. "We’re excited about the award because it recognizes the work our staff and students do on an ongoing basis on our campus.”

Tree Campus USA creates opportunities for college campuses to work with the greater community through tree-care management practices. The program also provides a hands-on way for students to care for their local environment through tree-related events.

Ms. Bennett encourages area residents to visit Cleveland State and view the large variety of trees present on campus. “Brochures are available in the administration building which identify the types and locations of many of our trees, and this is a good way to view firsthand a particular type of tree that you may be considering planting in your landscape,” she said.

Cleveland State will be celebrating Arbor Day on Saturday, April 17, in conjunction with the environmental festival, It'$ All About the Green.

For more information, contact CSCC Horticulturist Suzanne Bennett at 472-7141, ext. 273.