Louisiana Tech University School of Forestry - Forester Yearbook (Ruston, LA)

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T. L. James 8' Company congratulates the Department of Forestry of Louisiana Polytechnic Institute on the fourth anniversary of its accreditation by the Society of American Foresters. We have faith in the important roleof forestry in Louisiana's economy and in the present and future contributions by the forestry graduates of this institution. FORESTRY DIVISIC T. L. .I MES A D COMPA RUSTON, LOUISIANA Y, INC 33

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THE FORESTERS A D PUBLIC EDLICATIO by Ed Kerr The professional forester upon graduation from Louisiana Tech has benefitted from 16 or more years of public education a la Louisiana. He has reaped the benefits from a system which is almost as old as Am erica herself. But the forester soon finds that his connection with public education is not severed when he receives his diploma. Only his role changes--from student to teacher. In contrast to most other professional men, the forester cannot maneuver himself into a private corner to practice his profession. Rather, he must take his knowledge constantly to the public and strive to teach that public about forestry and good forestry practices. Why? Because the object of the forester's entire career is growing trees and no one has been able to grow trees anywhere except out-of-doors. Anywhere the forester grows trees, whether it be next year or 50 years from now, he will need the cooperation of people in order to grow those trees successfully. People live in the forests and by the forests. They hunt in the forest. They fish in the forest's lakes. They walk through it to get somewhere else or simply just to take a hike. They vote taxes on the forest land and sometimes on the trees that grow thereon. They approve rights of way through the forest for pipelines, roads and canals. They choose forest acreage for flood basins, water reservoirs and drainage structures. They vote for or against forest fire protection and forest research funds. They set forest fires, either accidentally or on purpose. No profession in the world has ever depended upon public understanding for its successful functioning as does forestry today. And why not? Everything the forester does affects to some extent some people. And the feeling that some people have about the trees around them borders on the religious. They agree with Joyce Kilmer that only God can make a tree and steadfastly oppose the mistreatment of God's creations. Aha! There, my anxious graduate, lies your big problem of public education. The average man, much less schooled in forestry than you, may well have a different idea of what constitutes mistreatment of trees than you have. For instance, thousands of them today look upon the deadening of hardwoods--any hardwoods--as wasteful, if not sacrilegious. He views it as a threat to his hunting future as well. Your job: teach him what you know, that worthless, misshapen hardwoods are denying valuable growth to the pines around them. How well you teach him this and the hundreds of other reasons why foresters do what they do, will in the final analysis, determine your success as a forester. The forester knows what he is doing is right. His problem in public relations is to convince the people in and around the woods that he is right. Sometimes this is a laborious process, demanding much time and talent on the part of the forester. In short, many foresters have learned to hold their Biltmore sticks in their left hand. Their right hand is reserved for a coffee cup. .32

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FORESTRY CLUB HOMECOMING FLOAT