Increasing diversity in the field of forestry and forest ecology through academic support and job opportunities

Background/Question/Methods

There is a widely recognized need to attract and retain minority college students in fields such as forestry, ecology, and natural resource management. While diversity has been continually increasing in most institutions of higher education, recruiting and retention efforts have not been as effective as desired. Additionally, too few of the underrepresented students with a degree in ecology or natural resources actually work in their field of expertise. The Forestry, Ecology and Wildlife Program at Alabama A&M University has been successfully recruiting, retaining, and training students from underrepresented minorities. Most of them now work for the USDA Forest Service. In this presentation we will share results from our experience and from a national diversity summit. Our findings should help other institutions of higher education diversify their student body in the fields of ecology and natural resources.

Results/Conclusions

Recruiting is particularly effective when carried out by alumni, especially recent minority graduates. Many students report that informal word-of-mouth tips about career options from friends, relatives, and others in the community are all-important in their choice of college major. Student identified issues of key importance include availability of financial support, presence of other minority students, professors, instructors, and staff in the program, availability of jobs, and opportunities for growth. Activities that contributed to the success of our program include: creating excitement about the great outdoors in middle and high-school students; bringing awareness of job opportunities in natural resources; promoting forestry as a respectable form of employment; recruiting from community colleges and urban centers; providing financial support, incentives, and summer internship opportunities; individual one-on-one attention from all professors in the major; sharing the pleasures of the natural world with youth by use of fun hands-on field trips; work-study opportunities where students earn some income while gaining practical research or management experience; and maintaining strong partnerships with employers of our alumni. The listed type of efforts should improve the ability of any natural resource program to diversify its student body and provide educational opportunities to more underrepresented students.