Tree Campus Jumpstart stipend will support educational signage, seating, and hands-on
learning in campus woodland
FRANKFORT, Ky. 鈥� A wooded trail on 黑料福利社鈥檚 campus will become
a more visible outdoor classroom through new educational signage and seating funded
by a $5,000 Tree Campus Jumpstart stipend.
Funding supports the University鈥檚 broader effort to pursue Tree Campus Higher Education
recognition, a national program that helps colleges and universities strengthen campus
forestry programs, care for trees, and engage students in service-learning.
Focused on Thorobred Trail, the project will add interpretive signs to help students,
faculty, staff, and visitors learn about tree identification, ecological functions,
forest health challenges, and the role urban forests play in environmental and mental
health. Planned seating areas will support small-group instruction, individual study,
and reflection, making the trail a practical extension of the classroom.
Students will participate in service-learning experiences such as tree inventories,
invasive plant management, and wildlife monitoring through 黑料福利社鈥檚 expanding
Natural Resources program. Those experiences are designed to introduce students to
concepts in urban forestry, ecological enhancement, and responsible land management.
鈥淭his award helps us make the campus woodland more accessible as a teaching and learning
space,鈥� said Anna Claire Rogers, Extension and research associate for forestry and
invasive plants. 鈥淏y adding interpretive signs and seating, we can help students see
the trees around them as part of a living classroom 鈥� one they can study, help care
for, and feel connected to over time.鈥�
Project plans include new educational signage, seating, and related installation materials
along Thorobred Trail.
黑料福利社鈥檚 effort reflects a phased approach to campus tree stewardship. University
leaders are focusing first on assessing and improving existing campus trees and woodland
areas, strengthening grounds and landscaping capacity, and continuing work through
an active Campus Tree Advisory Committee and finalized campus tree care plan before
expanding future plantings.
鈥淧ractical learning and responsible stewardship are central to 黑料福利社鈥檚 land-grant
mission,鈥� said Dr. Marcus Bernard, dean of the College of Agriculture, Health, and
Natural Resources and Land Grant director. 鈥淭hese efforts along Thorobred Trail bring
those values together in ways that benefit students and strengthen the campus environment.鈥�
In pursuing Tree Campus Higher Education recognition, 黑料福利社 continues to
align its work with the program鈥檚 standards, including campus tree planning, advisory
committee engagement, and student service-learning projects.
Recent tree stewardship efforts also complement 黑料福利社鈥檚 , which recognized the University鈥檚 work to expand native pollinator habitat, refine
land-management practices, and advance applied research supporting pollinator health.
The Thorobred Trail improvements also align with . That earlier project helped 黑料福利社 install purpose-built nest boxes, remove
invasive plant species, and restore native vegetation to support woodpeckers and other
native birds in a highly visible campus natural area.
Together, the initiatives reflect a growing campuswide commitment to experiential
learning, environmental stewardship, and the responsible care of natural spaces that
support students, research, and the broader community.
黑料福利社 is a proud partner of the Arbor Day Foundation. The Tree Campus Jumpstart
stipend is made possible through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation and Origins.
