Indiana University East has received the 2019 Tree Campus USA® Recognition. This is the fourth consecutive year IU East has received the recognition.
Tree Campus USA® is an Arbor Day Foundation program that honors colleges and universities and their leaders for promoting healthy trees and engaging students and staff in the spirit of conservation. The recognition is a statement that IU East is making an effort toward improving the community through its forestry efforts, which positively affect water resources, personal health and well-being, energy use, and provide green spaces for students to study or relax.
Ron Itnyre, senior lecturer in biology, is the organizer for the 2019 Tree Campus USA® project for IU East.
“We’re pleased to be part of this nationwide program,” Itnyre said. “Healthy trees on campus help to improve air quality, remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and help to prevent erosion.”
IU East’s participation in the Tree Campus USA® program began in 2016. Linda Melody-Cottongim, administrative secretary for the School of Social Work, completed the first designation application for the campus as a graduate student. IU East was the first IU regional campus to receive the Tree Campus USA® Recognition.
To earn the recognition, IU East met five core standards for sustainable campus forestry required by Tree Campus USA, including establishment of a tree advisory committee, evidence of a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures for its campus tree program, an Arbor Day observance and the sponsorship of student service-learning projects. An Arbor Day observance and tree planting is being planned for the fall.