Education through Competition

It’s 5:00 p.m. Do you know where your children are?

There are children in the woods. Lot’s of them. They’re performing tasks normally reserved for professional foresters, like timber cruising, site evaluation, and developing management recommendations to satisfy landowner objectives. And the scary thing is…they’re performing them well.

Every year a segment of Virginia’s youthful population forgoes watching television and shooting hoops after school to study forestry and natural resources related topics. These dedicated individuals compete in one of three statewide judging events: Envirothon, 4-H Forestry Judging, and the FFA Forestry Career Development Event.

FFA

The purpose of the Future Farmers of America Forestry Career Development Event is to stimulate student interest in forestry, promote forestry instruction in the agricultural education curriculum, and recognize students who learn and demonstrate competence in forestry. The FFA Career Development Event Handbook contains 11 objectives for youth participants, including the ability to understand and recognize: forestry terms, the contributions of the forest environment and the forest industry to the American economy, and approved silvicultural practices, among many other items.

As part of the formal competition, team members demonstrate knowledge through a written exam of basic forestry principles, tree and equipment identification, and demonstration of practical forestry skills, such as forest disorders, forest management, inventory, and an issues interview. Students compete at federation, area, state, and national levels.

Instructor Ed McCann has coached the Nelson County High School forestry team for 20 of his 23 years in the school system. He has built a successful program in a region known for stiff competition. Two years ago Nelson County won their area competition for the first time. Last year the team won the state competition, going on to place fifth in the nation. “We had one girl tie for sixth high individual in the nation,” Ed recounted proudly. He noted that the kids have also won the Forestry Field Day contest at the State Fair for the past four or five years.

Coach McCann is quick to share credit for his teams’ success. For starters, the kids have an excellent work ethic. “All our training takes place outside of school,” he said. “In March we start practicing two days per week, gradually picking up to three days per week. The kids often come in at 7:00 a.m. in the morning and practice until 8:30 a.m. when school starts.” Nelson County’s team members frequently practice in the evenings, on weekends, and holidays. Ed also appreciates the support his team has received from the Virginia Department of Forestry, consulting foresters, and the forest products industry. “We have had some really good people helping us get the kids prepared,” Ed said. “We had tremendous support from the timber industry.”

FFA forestry team members frequently pursue careers as professional foresters. Ed’s past students have gone on to study forestry at Dabney Lancaster, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and other schools. Students have also gone directly to work for logging operations.

“FFA forestry gives the students a chance to get practical, hands-on experience,” Coach McCann said. “Some of them realize it’s what they want to do.”

For further information on the FFA Forestry Career Development Event, or how to become a coach, contact Glen Anderson at the Department of Education (804) 225-2840.

4-H

The purpose of 4-H forestry judging is to develop appreciation for the importance of conserving forestland as a source of products, benefits, and services necessary for quality living. 4-H foresters learn citizenship, leadership, and practical forest management skills. By learning these skills young people will be better prepared to own forestland or deal with environmental issues in the future.

Participating in 4-H forestry judging means studying tree anatomy for proper identification while stomping through the forest, mastering insect and disease identification, and developing skill in pacing and land navigation using a compass or global positioning system (GPS) unit. Youth are also taught how to assess the timber value in a given parcel of land. A Biltmore stick is used to determine tree diameter and the number of merchantable sixteen foot logs available in a given tree specimen. A conversion table is then used to determine board foot volume per plot, and board foot volume per acre. In a site evaluation exercise, youth begin with a landowner objective. They then evaluate a given parcel or site, taking into account silvicultural practices, stocking, soil depth, aspect, and numerous other environmental variables. A forestry bowl contest and written exam is administered toward the end of the competition to assess overall knowledge and grasp of forestry practices.

4-H forestry judging competitions are currently available to youth in four of six Cooperative Extension districts throughout Virginia. District winners proceed to the state contest. This year’s state competition will be held at Virginia Tech during State 4-H Congress on June 19 and 20, 2002. The winning team proceeds to the National 4-H Forestry Invitational at Jackson’s Mill 4-H Conference Center in Weston, West Virginia, the first and oldest 4-H educational center in the nation. This event is sponsored by the International Paper Company Foundation through the Cooperative Extension program.

The assistance of coaches and natural resource professionals is vital to the success of youth interested in forestry judging. Earl Bledsoe, retiring vo-ag teacher in the Scott County school system, worked with Karen Hartsock, Chris Chapman, Scott County 4-H Agent Patty Collier, and other professionals to guide Scott’s 4-H Forestry Judging team to the 2001 state championship. Earl is very complimentary about the impact 4-H has on youth. “I encourage everyone to try it once,” he said. “It’s an enjoyable experience. If you keep kids involved in worthwhile ventures like this, you don’t have to worry about their minds straying to more harmful activities.”

For additional information on 4-H forestry judging, contact your local 4-H Extension Agent or visit the website http://www.ext.vt.edu/resources/4h/environment/forjudging/.html.

Envirothon

Dana Roberts, Education Coordinator with the Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, credits former VASWCD employee Dawn Shank with bringing Envirothon to Virginia. Virginia’s first statewide competition was conducted at Douthat State Park in 1995, attracting 12 teams. By 1997, more than 100 teams were participating statewide.

Over the years, Envirothon has become a popular natural resources competition for high school students. Teams of five students and an alternate compete in soils, forestry, aquatics, wildlife, environmental issues, and oral presentation. Students are tested on these topics and their ability to apply their knowledge to solve real-life environmental problems. The Envirothon goals include: fostering student interest in the natural environment; developing the skill to apply basic principles and practices of resource management and ecology; promoting stewardship of natural resources; developing critical thinking, cooperative problem-solving, and decision making skills, and; providing students with experience in environmentally oriented activities, enabling them to become environmentally aware, action-oriented citizens.

Actual competitions begin at the local level, as teams within individual Soil and Water Conservation Districts compete to represent the district at the Area Envirothon Competition. The top three teams from each area competition are eligible to attend the state Envirothon, which is held in a different location each year. The State Arboretum of Virginia will host the 2002 event. Virginia’s first place team represents the Commonwealth at the National Envirothon. In 1998, a team from Albemarle High School placed third, Virginia’s best finish ever. Each team member received a $1,000 college scholarship from Canon.

As with the other youth forestry competitions, Envirothon participants and coaches invest a great deal of time preparing for the event. “The kids meet three to four times per week on their own time and study a significant amount of material,” observed Bruce Pearce, District Manager for Halifax SWCD. “It takes a tremendous amount of dedication.”

For more information on Envirothon, contact Dana Roberts at (804) 559-0324 or visit the website www.vaswcd.org/envirthn.htm.

Although the FFA, 4-H, and Envirothon events are all competitive, education is the bottom line.