“It is more than just tree trimming,” Phil Berwick of Living Tree Care, Inc.
said of A Green Tree Academy.
“When it’s all said and done, it has more to do with beginning a job, finishing a job and having a passion, knowing how to communicate, teamwork and the ability to stretch oneself to the next level.”
A Green Tree Academy is now accepting applications for its 2008 job-training program. This academy provides job training, internships, and job-placement assistance to inner-city adults interested in the tree care industry.
After a successful pilot year, A Green Tree Academy will resume again this spring. Classes begin April 21 and run 10 weeks every Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Students are City of St. Louis limited-term employees and earn a $7 hourly wage while receiving job training, plus a bonus when they complete the program.
The program is open to St. Louis City residents from ages 18-24. Applicants must have a high school diploma or GED. Interested individuals should also be passionate about trees, the environment and working outdoors. Transportation to classes at three different sites each week is required.
Participating students will receive a Certificate of Completion from St. Louis Community College in addition to job, scholarship and educational opportunities through the program’s many partners.
The program began with a letter from Berwick to the City requesting the establishment of a program to teach arboriculture to local at-risk youth.
“He had a contract with the City and was trimming trees in O’Fallon Park,” said Judy Armstrong of the Comptroller’s office.
“While he was working, he had people come up to him asking would he hire them or if he needed some help trimming trees.”
The program was created by Comptroller Darlene Green along with partners from the City forestry department, St. Louis Community College, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and Living Tree Care, Inc.
“Even though it’s tiresome, I like climbing the tree. The field is definitely more important than I thought it was,” said recent Sumner grad Lawan Harris and 2007 Green Tree Academy member.
“There are a lot of career opportunities within arboriculture, and it doesn’t have to be outside.”
“I was like, ‘Arboriculture, outside in the heat? No thank you,’” Joi Pickett said last year during her Green Tree Academy training. “But then I actually realized that this is something that I like.”
“I came out here on the field day, and they were able to identify the different types of trees,” Armstrong said.
“You can see what they are learning in the classroom and how they are applying it in the field.”
The deadline for applications is March 14, 2008. For more information or to request an application, call (314) 890-1835; stop by City Hall, Room 212; or visit the comptroller’s Web site at www.stlouis.missouri.org/citygov/comptroller/
greentreeacademy.
