Something amazing happened in the Roland T. Stern Learning Center at the University of Florida’s Austin Cary Forest in Gainesville on Oct. 14. Kids from all over the state of Florida traveled near and far and leaned in to learn.
For more than 25 years, dozens of UF forest and wildlife experts, students and extension agents from the School of Forest, Fisheries and Geomatics Sciences (SFFGS) have spent a Saturday in October volunteering to pass along knowledge to competitors in the annual Florida 4-H Forest Ecology competition.
The upcoming contest takes place on March 30 at Austin Cary Forest. It encourages youth to identify forest trees, plants, wildlife, and forest health stresses, and to demonstrate their knowledge of forest ecology and management, map and compass, tree measurement, forest management, and natural history. Youth at all three 4-H age levels (Juniors ages 8 to 10, Intermediates ages 11-13 and seniors ages 14 to 18) can compete individually or in teams.
This year, 55 members of 4-H arrived bright and early to hone their skills and to be exposed to potential career paths. The clinic was designed to prepare competitors by reviewing topics and skills that will be measured in the contest.
Elise Cassie, 4-H Forest Ecology Contest and Nature Poetry Contest Coordinator delivered a welcome to the participants from a deck overlooking Lake Mize as alligators, waterfowl and other creatures milled about.
“It was great to see the 4-Hers and hear how excited they are about the contest coming up on March 30th,” she said.
For decades, SFFGS has operated and participated in extension programs such as Fishing for Success, Project Learning Tree (PLT), and Kids in the Woods with a goal of taking kids out of the classroom and giving them a chance to commune with and learn about nature.
Studies designed to measure the impacts of introducing youth to natural habitats and outdoor education have not only proven that activities such as hiking, climbing, digging and navigating natural terrain are known to release the hormone cortisol in the brain and that helps reduce anxiety and stress, but they also proved that youth who learn about forests and the outdoors are more aware of the environment and likely to become stewards of it.
Cassie, who is also the assistant coordinator of Florida PLT, plans, prepares and conducts the events and said she relies on help from volunteer educators. “Without them, these events would not happen and be such a success,” she said.
Many of the volunteers at the clinic are former winners of the contest and current or former students of the SFFGS.
UF Forestry and Natural Resources 2023 graduate Jonathan Vonesh participated in the 4-H Forest Ecology program for seven years. “It was something that I very much enjoyed doing and it turned into an amazing opportunity for me to continue learning about the field and even starting a career.”
He was the highest scoring senior competitor when he represented Alachua County in 2018 competition. His first-place prize was a scholarship to SFFGS, which he used in pursuit of a degree in Forest Resources and Conservation.
Vonesh was teaching a dozen senior members how to identify trees in one corner of the learning center first discussing distinct characteristics of tree leaves and then took the students outside to point out identifiers of trees.
Nearby in the Education Center disguised as a rustic cabin, other presenters were quizzing students on animal tracks, environmental legislation, law and policies and in the adjacent meadow, participants were getting acquainted with maps and compasses.
Tonee Davis is a 2001 graduate of the SFFGS and has served as a U.S. Forest Service Natural Resource Specialist for 23 years. She said she enjoys taking part in the event each year.
“It’s encouraging to help our future generations,” said Davis, who does conducts outreach education and manages partnerships while serving on the steering committee of the PLT.
Volunteer Abigail Pruden, a junior at P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School, won first place in the Senior Individual Division in 2022 and a scholarship to attend the SFFGS. Pruden helped coach students on map skills and history, law, and policies.
SFFGS Assistant Professor Dan Johnson SFFGS enlisted the help of Researcher Dila Baramita to set up four trees for the measurement training session. Students were introduced to a Biltmore stick which is a 19th century tool used for measuring tree diameter and height.
“Foresters are efficient,” Johnson said about why they use a stick for several calculations. “There are lots of tools that make it easy for us to count things in the forest such as diameter, Heights, volume.
Home-schooled student Jocelyn Wood of Pinellas County was wearing a Geomatics T-shirt from the SFFGS and said her goal is to study Geomatics. “I met with an advisor, and they gave me some merch,” she said. Wood started competing in the contest at age 8 and now is 17 hoping to win the senior category and a scholarship.
Levy County participant Josh Mullins,10, said he likes learning about fresh water and swamps. His brother Jim Mullins, 12, said his favorite activity is identifying tree branches and ecology. The brothers are competing in the Intermediate group.
Their mother Shana Mullins said she heard about the contest in their 4-H group. “It seems like a great way to learn about careers,” she said, adding that she will incorporate the lessons they learned into science class since both sons are homeschooled. “This gives them an opportunity to explore careers and is an exposure to forestry,” she said. “And they really like to the outdoors.”
Vonesh just accepted a job with the State of Tennessee Division of Forestry as an entry level forester and credits exploring his passion for the forest to the 4-H contest which led him to attend the SFFGS.
“I’m hoping to stay there for at least a year to develop my skills in timber cruising, making management decisions and get some time on prescribed burns,” he said about his new job. “I do eventually want to get into wildland firefighting but I’m focusing on getting into the field for now.”
For more information on the Florida 4-H Forest Ecology Contest click here.
For more information about the SFFGS click here.
