The Urban Forestry Academy is a new program at Worcester Technical High School established in 2025 to introduce students to the world of urban and community forestry - from identifying tree species and learning about the habitats that forests provide at different scales to managing invasive species, the role of green infrastructure, and learning to chop wood!

The Collaborative received funding from River Network's Rooting Resilience program (via US Forest Service's Urban and Community Forestry program) to kick off this program and facilitate hands on-learning experiences and field trips critical to the curriculum that otherwise would not have been possible. Each year, students learn about the role of traditional indigenous knowledge in managing different landscapes at Pequoig Farm, run by the Nipmuc Band. They have visited mini Miyawaki Forests around the City of Worcester as the largest urban wildlife sanctuary in New England, Mass Audubon's Broad Meadow Brook.

The grant partners with local Clark University for students to explore and learn at their GIS labs, visit the university's own Hadwen Arboretum, and learn about the role of drone imagery and participate in flying with staff from Clark's GIS Department. Students also visit Harvard Forest's 4,000 acre outdoor classroom exploring long-term ecological experiments and how the New England landscape has changed over time.

Upon graduating, students will receive a Forestry Technician certificate from the Society of American Foresters (SAF) as well as numerous other safety and technical certifications, including several from OSHA. The program highlights student interactions with a wide variety of practitioners and researchers alike, helping expand students' knowledge of various fields and opportunities. These experiences and certifications then help open doors to students after graduation - whether they want to pursue additional schooling, technical training, or jump right into the professional world.