History of the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at North Carolina State University, 1979-2008
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History of the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at North Carolina State University, 1979-2008 Forward by Arthur W. Cooper, Professor Emeritus, Department Head 1979-1994 My effort to write a history of the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at NC State University began in mid-2006 as a simple attempt to document “what happened” in the Department between 1979 and 2005. It intended to extend the history of the first 50 years of the Department, from the inception of the forestry program in 1929 to 1979, written by Ted Miller for the [then] School of Forest Resources 50th anniversary. However, as I began the writing, I was quickly impressed with two things. First, that it would take much more than one year to complete the work. The length of time required to run down specific pieces of information and the generally fragmented, and often limited, sources of University information made the job much more time consuming than I originally envisioned it to be. In addition, difficulty in placing bounds on what should be included and the temptation to editorialize, interpret, and place into context events in the Department’s history, extended the writing another full year. Thus, the history is now for a 30-year period from 1979 to 2008. Second, and perhaps more important, early in the writing I realized that the period about which I was writing was a period of dramatic change, not only in the Department but also in forestry as a profession and enterprise. In 1980 the Department was basically a classic forestry department with almost complete emphasis on forest management and its related fields. By 2008, a virtually complete turnover in faculty occurred, a different kind of forestry was being taught, new academic programs in natural resource management and environmental technology and management had begun, the graduate program had grown substantially, and the involvement of the faculty and exposure of students to the international dimensions of natural resource management had become pervasive throughout the Department. The nature and significance of these changes demanded that how and why they took place be documented. This history consists of 5 parts: • Narrative chapters describing various aspects of the Department’s activity and programs between 1979 & 2008; • An annotated list of all faculty serving in the Department between 1979 and 2008; • A list of honors won by the faculty between 1979 and 2008; • A list of books written by faculty and published between 1979 and 2008; • A bullet synopsis of the major events occurring in the Department between 1979 and 2008. The SUBJECT MATTER CHAPTERS need little explanation. Each covers a major area of the Department’s activity. Various faculty members most closely involved with each area have reviewed virtually all of the writing and their comments have been incorporated. Chapter 10 covering those aspects of the Department’s research not related to the Research Cooperatives awaits small contributions from several faculty members before it is complete. Chapter 11 on Extension and Outreach is not yet done and will be added when it is finished. At some point a chapter 12 will be written summarizing the 30 years in the life of the Department, casting them into the context of events in the larger world, and predicting what, in my mind, they mean for the future. The LIST OF FACULTY is a full list of all persons who served in tenure track and equivalent positions between 1979 and 2008. It does not include persons who were research assistants or research associates during their entire careers in the Department nor does it include SPA personnel. A person, however, is included if he/she began as a research assistant or associate or in a similar position and then moved into a tenure track slot. For persons who began as graduate students their initial date of appointment is chosen to be the date on which she/he converted from graduate student status to tenure track or to an appointment that led to a tenure track position. Living retired faculty members with emeritus status are shown as emeritus. For persons who have chosen early retirement their date of retirement is chosen to be the date on which their early retirement status ended and they became fully retired. The LIST OF HONORS shows significant honors won by each faculty member during the period covered. The definition of “significant” is subjective. Clearly, a national honor (National Academy of Science, SAF award, etc.) is included as are State-wide honors. Campus honors are included when they are campus-wide and a major recognition of achievement by the University. Generally, editorships and associate editorships are not included. These honors illustrate the strength and reputation of our faculty and are an essential part of the Department’s history. The LIST OF BOOKS is just that—a list of books written and published by our faculty, alone or with others, between 1979 and 2008. This list undoubtedly is missing entries as it includes only those I could run down myself. Additions will be appreciated. The BULLET HISTORY is a summary, largely in single sentence form, of the major events in the Department’s history between 1979 and 2008. Although clearly abbreviated and without explanation, it is a short documentation of the Department’s history and, if for no other reason is useful for its brevity. Most of the material, particularly that of a complex or controversial nature, has been read by at least one faculty member and his/her comments included. Nonetheless, a relatively small number of faculty members have been involved in such reviews. If, in your reading of this history, you find corrections that must be made or have additions that you think would enhance the story, please let me have them, either by email to my home email address ([email protected]) or as hardcopy in my box in the office. This first public copy of the text is labeled as Version 1.0 (given we are in the age of computers, what other identification would have been appropriate!) and dated 15 July 2008. As corrections and additions are accumulated, they will be added and the date and version updated. Finally, I am responsible for all facts, conclusions, and opinions contained in these documents. As requested above, please provide me with any errors or omissions. After completing this work, I am impressed with the accomplishments, intellectual and otherwise, made by the Department in the last 30 years. The Department of Fore-s try and Environmental Resources at NC State University represents all that is good and important about higher education. In the face of a rapidly changing view of the role of forestry and foresters and given the need to adjust academic programs to meet societal needs, the Department has maintained an excellence and diligence that make me proud to say “I am a member of that Department.” Many thanks for your help, Art Cooper TABLE OF CONTENTS: 1. Introduction 2. Faculty 3. Administration and Organization 4. Physical Facilities 5. Undergraduate Curricula.doc 6. Undergraduate Extra-Curricular Programs 7. Graduate Programs 8. College Forests 9. Research, Industrial Cooperatives and Related Programs 10. Research, Organized Programs and Personal Research Appendix 1 Chronological Listing of Faculty Appendix 2 Honors won by Forestry Faculty Appendix 3 Books Published by Faculty Appendix 4 Chronology of Major Events Version 1.0, 15 July 2008 HISTORY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AT NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY, 1979-2008 FORWARD My effort to write a history of the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at NC State University began in mid-2006 as a simple attempt to document “what happened” in the Department between 1979 and 2005. It intended to extend the history of the first 50 years of the Department, from the inception of the forestry program in 1929 to 1979, written by Ted Miller for the [then] School of Forest Resources 50th anniversary. However, as I began the writing, I was quickly impressed with two things. First, that it would take much more that one year to complete the work. The length of time required to run down specific pieces of information and the generally fragmented, and often limited, sources of University information made the job much more time consuming than I originally envisioned it to be. In addition, difficulty in placing bounds on what should be included and the temptation to editorialize, interpret, and place into context events in the Department’s history, extended the writing another full year. Thus, the history is now for a 30-year period from 1979 to 2008. Second, and perhaps more important, early in the writing I rea- lized that the period about which I was writing was a period of dra- matic change, not only in the Department but also in forestry as a profession and enterprise. In 1980 the Department was basically a classic forestry department with almost complete emphasis on forest management and its related fields. By 2008, a virtually complete turnover in faculty occurred, a different kind of forestry was being taught, new academic programs in natural resource management and envi- ronmental technology had begun, the graduate program had grown sub- stantially, and the involvement of the faculty and exposure of stu- dents to the international dimensions of natural resource management had become pervasive throughout the Department. The nature and signi- ficance of these changes demanded that how and why they took place be documented. This history consists of 5 parts: • Narrative chapters describing various aspects of the Depart- ment’s activity and programs between 1979 and 2008; • An annotated list of all faculty serving in the Department be- tween 1979 and 2008; • A list of honors won by the faculty between 1979 and 2008; • A list of books written by faculty and published between 1979 and 2008; • A bullet synopsis of the major events occurring in the Depart- ment between 1979 and 2008.