Franklin College was honored with a 2021 Tree Campus Higher Education recognition by the Arbor Day Foundation for its commitment to effective urban forest management. This marks the ninth consecutive year the college has earned the distinction.

The Arbor Day Foundation is the world’s largest membership nonprofit organization dedicated to planting trees. Its Tree Campus Higher Education program began in 2008 to encourage colleges and universities to plant trees on their campuses.

“Trees not only play a vital role in the environment but also in our daily lives,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Having trees on college and university campuses is a great way to show a commitment to students’ and faculty’s overall wellbeing.”

The Tree Campus Higher Education program honors colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals. Franklin College achieved the distinction by meeting Tree Campus Higher Education’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 393 campuses across the United States with this recognition.

“Last year, we updated our tree inventory of the campus and found we have approximately 1,000 trees on campus,” said Alice Heikens, Ph.D., professor of biology. “Maintaining this many trees is challenging but not only do they add beauty and shade, but ecological functions including habitat and food for animals. Our physical facilities team devotes much work to help us achieve the Tree Campus designation, in addition to tree donors, student volunteers and biology research students.”

More information about the program is available at www.arborday.org/programs/tree-campus-higher-education/.

About the Arbor Day Foundation: 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.

For more information, contact the Franklin College Office of Communications at (317) 738-8185.

POSTED Apr 20, 2022