Natural Resources

Bring your boots. This is no ordinary desk job. The men and women who take on the exciting challenge of managing our forests must be self-confident, possess physical stamina, and be able to operate sophisticated computer systems in the office one day and perform inventory surveys deep in the forest the next. Forests are complex, dynamic ecosystems that provide wood products, wildlife and fisheries habitat, clean water, and a place where we can go for recreation, relaxation, or spiritual renewal. The need to successfully manage these resources will be one of the most difficult and rewarding tasks of the 21st century.

Imagine your office is in the heart of the forest. Chemeketa can take you there.

The Career

Managing a complex and interrelated set of resources while balancing ecological needs and society's expectations is a challenging task. Forestry professionals must draw on an enormous and growing body of knowledge to make management decisions. They must be creative, adaptable and have the ability to look to the future for long-term sustainability of forest resources.

As a forest technician, you will generally work outdoors in all types of terrain and weather conditions, gathering information for federal agencies, private timber companies or private consulting firms. You will then interpret this data, information about timber, wildlife habitat conditions, and a variety of other economic and ecological factors.

The Program

Chemeketa's Forest Management Transfer program emphasizes integrated decision-making, grounded in the fields of ecology, conservation and sociology. You must be skilled in careful, detailed observation and the ability to clearly write down what is observed at the work site.

At Chemeketa, our field studies are conducted at several off-campus forested sites, as well as at Chemeketa's on-campus aquatic ecology laboratory. Course work is offered in such areas as forest surveying, wildlife conservation, Oregon tree and shrub identification, forest policy and environmental science. It is also important that you have a good understanding of trigonometry and geometry, as well as the laws that constrain your activities in the woods.

If you wish to further your education in forest or wildlife management after earning an Associate of Applied Science degree at Chemeketa, you can transfer many of your courses to top forestry colleges in the Northwest, including those at Oregon State University, the University of Idaho, and the University of Montana.

Getting Started

If you haven't been to Chemeketa recently, your first step should be a visit to the college, talk to an advisor and learn what the college can do to help you reach your goal. You can arrange a time to take the college's free placement tests, which will help determine whether or not you need to take some basic skills classes in mathematics, reading or writing before enrolling in the program.

Through Chemeketa's Credit for Prior Learning program, you may be able to earn credit for learning acquired through job, community or volunteer service, non-credit classes or individual study.

For additional program details, you may call or e-mail:

503.399.5253; dunt@chemeketa.edu
503.399.6534; gara@chemeketa.edu

Northwest Center for Sustainable Resources

Chemeketa Community College is the home of the Northwest Center for Sustainable Resources, funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation as part of its Advanced Technological Education Program. The center's mission is to improve natural resources-based education programs at the high school and community college level, in partnership with high schools, community colleges, four-year colleges and universities, private industry, government agencies, research groups and Native American tribes.

Chemeketa is a lead site for the center, and its on-campus location has helped the college in many ways. For example, the center helped establish Chemeketa's aquatic ecology lab, which allows students to do hands-on, experimental science. And, because of the reputation of the center, several governmental agencies have contacted the college, offering their assistance. This has led to the establishment of several new sites for use by science students.

Learn more at the center's web site: www.ncsr.org

Updated October 2006 by the College Advancement Department.