Cooperative Education Returns to AVC
Landscape Horticulture Student Experiences the "Real World"
by Dan Harms
October 22, 2008
Four mornings a week Laura Albrecht, a senior at River Ridge High School leaves school, not to attend the area vocational center as her classmates do but to travel South to work. Laura, a second year Landscape Horticulture student enrolled through the Area Vocational Center, travels to Native Arbor Nursery in Hanover to work in the nursery, learning the skills necessary to run a successful tree and shrub nursery.
Above: Laura checks plants against an inventory list.
Developed by Jon Kelly of Mississippi Valley Tree Experts, the Native Arbor Nursery concentrates on growing plants native to the region. Using an advanced "in ground bag" system, the nursery grows trees and shrubs to landscape size.
As a cooperative education student, Laura experiences typical nursery tasks four days a week and returns to the classroom for the fifth day. She keeps a daily log of her experiences and has an opportunity to evaluate, discuss, and work on employment skills in the classroom.
Laura has been working on tagging trees and shrubs, checking the inventory, and has helped plant new plants and mulch existing ones.
Above: Laura color codes the nursery inventory to record the plant's status.
Deb Kelly, Laura's immediate supervisor says, " Laura is a prompt, hard worker. We have been very pleased with her work and help."
