Wake Forest Receives Tree Campus Higher Education Designation 13th Year in a Row
Wake Forest has been re-certified as a Tree Campus Higher Education by the Arbor Day Foundation for the 13th year in a row, thanks to the efforts of our campus arborist, Jim Mussetter, the Facilities & Campus Services Landscaping and Arboriculture team, the Campus Tree Advisory Committee, and many more dedicated colleagues.
Wake Forest was first recognized as a Tree Campus Higher Education (formerly, Tree Campus USA) in 2011, and has been awarded the designation each consecutive year since. We are proud to maintain a 1:1 tree replacement ratio when trees meet the end of their lifespan or need to be removed due to hazardous conditions.
For the past 31 years that he’s been on staff, Mussetter has maintained and planted thousands of trees around campus with the help of his arboriculture team. These span from the Magnolia trees on Manchester Plaza to the beautiful dogwoods and eastern red buds in bloom, and many more native species around campus.
The campus community celebrated this designation on Friday, April 26 at our Arbor Day Celebration & Weed Wrangle at South Residence Hall. We began with a ceremony featuring poetry readings led by student and staff leaders and a tree blessing by Associate Chaplain of Jewish Life, Gail Bretan. Students then picked up shovels and helped plant three new trees around the side of South Hall. From there, students, faculty, and staff broke into three groups to wrangle weeds and clean up trash in the surrounding wooded areas. The afternoon ended with a cookout featuring veggie and grass-fed beef sliders and plant-based ice cream.
The event was co-organized as part of a long-standing partnership between The Office of Sustainability, Residence Life & Housing, and Facilities & Campus Services Landscaping Team.
Throughout Earth Month, yellow tree tags also hung around campus to educate the Wake Forest community about the ways trees enrich our lives and provide ecosystem services. Over 65 tags were strategically placed in high-traffic areas and distributed widely across campus to maximize opportunities for engagement with the facts and quotes displayed.
View a video overview of the 2024 tree tags.