Arbor Day Foundation honors ACTC with 2019 Tree Campus USA recognition

Feb. 11, 2020

 

Ashland Community and Technical College was honored with 2019 Tree Campus USA recognition by the Arbor Day Foundation for its commitment to effective urban forest management. This is the fifth consecutive year ACTC has received the distinction.

"Tree Campuses and their students set examples for not only their student bodies but the surrounding communities showcasing how trees create a healthier environment,” said Dan Lambe, president of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Because of Ashland Community and Technical College's participation, air will be purer, water cleaner and your students and faculty will be surrounded by the shade and beauty the trees provide.”

The Tree Campus USA program honors colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals. Ashland Community and Technical College achieved the title by meeting Tree Campus USA’s five standards, which include maintaining a tree advisory committee, a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures for its campus tree program, an Arbor Day observance and student service-learning project. Currently there are 385 campuses across the United States with this recognition.

“This is our fifth straight year earning Tree Campus USA recognition, which highlights the importance of the long-term plan for our campus landscape,” said Paul Seasor, ACTC’s director of maintenance and operations. “It also garners community involvement at ACTC through our Arbor Day tree giveaway. We continue to diversify our plant collection through tree replacements, and new landscapes to enhance the beauty and educational value of our campus.”

In 2019, ACTC was certified a Monarch Waystation by transforming the landscape into a habitat and feeding ground for Monarch butterflies during their yearly migration. Some of the plants that have been added around campus are butterfly milkweed and common milkweed, which are host plants for monarch butterflies. ACTC also has black-eyed Susan, cosmos, lantana, verbena, zinnia and purple coneflower, which are nectar plants for monarch butterflies.

ACTC also hosts an annual tree giveaway, in partnership with Kentucky Power and the city of Ashland. This year’s giveaway will be April 25. More detail will be released closer to the event.

The Arbor Day Foundation has helped campuses throughout the country plant thousands of trees, and Tree Campus USA colleges and universities invested more than $51 million in campus forest management last year. This work directly supports the Arbor Day Foundation’s Time for Trees initiative — an unprecedented effort to plant 100 million trees in forests and communities and inspire 5 million tree planters by 2022. Last year, Tree Campus USA schools have collectively planted 34,515 trees and engaged 33,432 tree planters — helping us work toward these critical goals.

More information about the program is available at arborday.org/TreeCampusUSA.
The Arbor Day Foundation is a million member nonprofit conservation and education organization with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information is available at arborday.org.