The following information is for educators seeking to learn more about the forestry training and forestry programs offered through MSU Extension through a grant by the Michigan Forest Resource Alliance.  MSU 4-H leaders may be interested in learning more about the role they can play.  Teachers, school district personnel, ISD specialists may be interested in bringing these programs into their area.  The main contacts for this effort are Bill Cook (cookwi@msu.edu or 906-786-1575) and Dave Andersen (andersed@msue.msu.edu or 906-341-3688).  Current training schedule.

FORESTRY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING OPPORTUNITIES
THROUGH THE MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION 4-H NETWORK

Why forests and forestry?    Mostly because the topic is fun!  Just about everyone has an interest in trees and forests for at least one reason or another.  Second, forests are natural resources critical to supporting our lifestyles, economy, and environment.  Our dependency upon forests is not commonly recognized, similar to other resources that we tend to take for granted.  Forests are renewable, dynamic, living systems that supply us with wood, recreation, inspiration, wildlife habitat, clean water, intact soils, and better air quality.  Managing forests to produce more of these outputs becomes increasingly important as our population grows and per capita demand rises.  Forest management sculpts the landscape with a vision of the future, using science and social studies.  These programs will help youth learn how the "roots" of how we live reach into the natural resource base that we usually are not directly exposed to in our diverse walks in life. 

The Michigan Forest Resource Alliance (MFRA) has provided a grant to Michigan State University Extension for purpose of conducting a series of forestry training sessions throughout Michigan.  The intent of the grant is to train 4-H staff, 4-H volunteers, and other interested people in two forestry programs. 

The “TREE” program is a classroom presentation for fourth and fifth grades.  MFRA and MSU Extension are hoping train a cadre of 4-H leaders and other interested people in the delivery of this program to the classroom.  TREE comes with a poster kit, a script, and several show-n-tell items.  The TREE program has been around for nearly ten years.  Recently, teacher requests for the program have exceeded the ability to deliver.  The Michigan Forest Resource Alliance (MFRA) provides $100 stipends for each three presentations made, to be paid to county accounts in the case of 4-H personnel.  To receive the stipends, presenters must have gone through this training and submit a completed record form answering the “who, where, how many” type questions.  If you are a teacher that would like to bring this program to your classroom, contact MFRA or your County Extension office.  We’ll work to deliver the program as quickly as possible.  Training time will vary with group size, but two -three hours are anticipated.

The Michigan Forests Forever package contains three instructional pieces; a video and an interactive CD-ROM for students, and an on-line Teachers Guide for teachers.  Training with this package allows 4-H leaders and others to response to school in-service requests for the forestry resources and curriculum development.  Hopefully, 4-H leaders might be excited enough about this package to actively seek in-service opportunities within the education community.  Also, the Michigan Forests Forever project will be promoted among teachers through a variety of methods.  Again, if you are a teacher and would like to have this project demonstrated at an in-service, contact MFRA or your County Extension office.  The Michigan Forests Forever project would be the program in-service scheduling.  Training will take occupy the better part of two hours. 

Most of the training and in-service sessions will be scheduled from December, 2002 through March, 2003.  If possible, we hope to utilize facilities such as the Kettunen Center, RAM Center, Kellogg Forest, Novi Center, Clear Lake, Bay College, and other places commonly used by MSU Extension.  Intermediate School Districts interested in this training should contact their County Extension office or either Bill Cook or Dave Andersen. 

Fees?
There are no fees for the workshop, as these expenses are paid through the MFRA grant.  However, participants will incur time, travel, and lunch expenses, although sometimes we can find a sponsor for lunches.  The only other cost is $15 for the CD-ROM / Video package for the Michigan Forests Forever package.  Sometimes, we can find sponsors for those costs, too.

TREE PROGRAM FOR 4^TH AND 5^TH GRADERS
 

     The TREE program  was developed by the Michigan Forest Resource Alliance to reach school children at the fourth and fifth grade level.  At these grade levels, students are often introduced to topics such as Michigan history, photosynthesis, and the tropical rain forest.  It is an excellent opportunity to embellish these themes with information about our own forest right here in Michigan. 

     MSU Extension has adapted the TREE program and it has been very well received in hundreds of classrooms and by thousands of students.  It consists of several modules with a number of show n’tell materials.  All the information is rarely used during a presentation.  Rather, students help drive the topics of a particular session.  The program is highly interactive.  Questions flow back and forth between presenter and students.  Much fun can be had with the material.  The program is always evolving, often from cues provided by students and teachers.  The MSU Extension Forestry Area of Expertise will be provided presenter training sessions throughout Michigan to help make this program available to more schools and fits will with many curriculum standards and benchmarks.

Topics potentially covered include:

v     Forest history from glaciation, to near complete forestation, to where we are today.

v     Some Michigan forest facts.

v     Tree identification features and key Michigan tree species with a stress on differing silvics.

v     Forest associations and community distribution.

v     Tree morphology, annual rings (two/season), growth, CO₂ and O₂ ratios, and photosynthesis.

v     Natural vs. artificial regeneration.

v     Forest products (e.g. 5,000+ products and Levi’s hip tag paper made in Munising).

v     Wildlife habitat requirements.

v     Recreation, watersheds, and soil protection.

v     Michigan harvest (cord pile 3,500 miles long).

v     Michigan growth (cord pile 8,000 miles long).

v     Michigan standing volume (cord pile almost 300,000 miles long). 

v     Introduction to silvicultural systems.

Back to Michigan Forests Forever website.

Forestry Education Action Plan

Michigan State University Extension (4-H and the Forestry Area of Expertise)

Issue

State-wide educational programs and resource materials about forestry and forest management need development and implementation.

The Situation – The Assumptions

• Forests are critical components in our lifestyle, economy, and environmental health.
• Managed forests produce more benefits than unmanaged forests.
• The connection between forests, management, and human welfare is poorly understood.
• Increasing demands upon forest resources requires careful management.
• Few forestry or forest management concepts exist in school curricula.
• Forests and wildlife are attractive topics among many students.
• Forestry fits very well into the Michigan Curriculum Framework.
• Forestry integrates science, social studies, mathematics, and English language arts.
• MSU Extension has presence in each Michigan County and often has connections to schools through other educational efforts.
• Forestry education well fits the mission, role, and capability of MSU Extension.

 Stakeholder Input

The Michigan Forest Resource Alliance sought an avenue to promote forestry education in public schools.  The Alliance will evaluate the success or failure.  Therefore, in this sense, they are the major stakeholder in this effort.  No formal survey tool has been conducted among other stakeholders.  Informal input includes:

• Requests from teachers.
• Requests from forest industry and the forestry community.
• Requests from organizations (e.g. Conservation Districts). 
• An informal survey among school districts in the Upper Peninsula.
• A consensus among MSU Extension forestry educators about the need for such programming.
• An apparent lack of similar programs* among natural resource agencies and organizations.
• An apparent omission of “management” in most environmental education programs. 

* Note:  Project Learning Tree, Project WILD, Project WET, 4-H Tracker, and related programs are good sources of natural resource related activities and information.  However, there is often missing background for teachers to optimize the use and implementation of many activities.  The Michigan Forests Forever project has been designed to complement these programs and, in fact, references many of the Project Learning Tree activities in cooperation with the American Forest Foundation.  

Grant Objectives

• Provide training sessions and educational tools for 4-H leaders, teachers, and other interested individuals.
• TREE program:  Revise and formalize the script and materials for fourth and fifth grade classroom presentation.  Train 4-H leaders and others in the delivery of this program. 
• Michigan Forests Forever (MFF) project:  Train 4-H leaders and others in the use of the MFF materials.
• Promote the TREE program and MFF project within the education community.
• Connect teacher requests for the TREE program and MFF project with trained program deliverers.

Audience

There are two primary audiences; 4-H leaders and schools.  By plan, the first audience is 4-H leaders, the pool from which personnel will be trained.  The second audience is the students and teachers that receive presentations and training delivered by trained 4-H personnel; 1) fourth and fifth grade students (TREE program), and 2) teachers, who will be introduced to the MFF project materials.

Collaborators can include any individuals and groups willing to serve as trainers and promoters of these programs.  Such groups can potentially include Intermediate School Districts, teachers, Conservation Districts, Society of American Foresters, forest industry foresters, and others. 

Expected Outcomes

Shorter-term outcomes (by 30 June, 2003):

• At least 12 training sessions, at least two in each of six MSU Extension Regions.
• A minimum of 2-3 trained individuals in each MSU Extension Region.
• A minimum of 2-3 TREE kits and MFF packages in each MSU Extension Region.
• Meet 90%+ of teacher requests for the TREE presentation.
• At least a 15% increase in the number of delivered TREE programs.
• An increase in sale of MFF CD-ROMs and videos.
• A minimum of 4000 “hits” on the on-line MFF Teachers Guide.
• Meet all ISD and school district requests for training directly from MFRA supported trainers.
• Presentation of the MFF project at the 2003 Michigan Science Teachers Association Conference.

Longer-term outcomes

• Maintain list of trained personnel.
• Track educational sessions held by trained personnel.
• Track sale of CD-ROMs and videos, and web hits on the MFF Teachers Guide.
• Track #classrooms and #students receiving the TREE program.
• One and two-year follow-up surveys of teachers about use and implementation of TREE materials and forestry concepts in their curricula.
• Maintain list of teachers exposed to MFF project.
• Survey “MFF teachers” to gauge utilization of materials and curriculum concepts.
• Track school districts in which the high school forestry curriculum has been used, in part or in its entirety.
• Continue to provide training sessions and program promotion as resources provide. 
• Work with the Michigan Department of Education to access trends in scores on the natural resource related questions in the MEAP exams. 

Grant Evaluation

Determine if all objectives have been met, short-term outcomes have been realized, and steps have been taken to secure the longer-term outcomes.  Report accomplishments to the Michigan Forest Resource Alliance.  MFRA has the option of renewing portions of this grant for a second year.  If this occurs, it would be interpreted as MFRA satisfaction with the current year efforts. 

CURRENT TRAINING SCHEDULE

If there is not a session near you, then contact Bill Cook (cookwi@msu.edu or 906-786-1575) and Dave Andersen (andersed@msue.msu.edu or 906-341-3688) to get one lined up! 

To register for any of these workshops, contact either Bill or Dave. 

The standard agenda runs from 8:30 through about 3:00. 

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