Extension is a major part of my program at Clemson University. I serve as the South Carolina State Specialist for forest health and invasive species issues, which encompasses invertebrate pests, diseases, and invasive plants. I frequently advise professionals from local, state, regional, and national entities on issues related to tree and forest health. I work with professional organizations, landowner groups, and many other entities to ensure their members have adequate knowledge to successfully manage their land.


Science Communications

I am active on social media as I believe this helps reach audiences that other, more traditional, engagement methods might not reach. I am involved with a regional forest and tree health diagnostics page (Southern Forest and Tree Health Diagnostics) which is a free service that anyone with a Facebook account can use.
 

Southern Forest Health and Invasive Species program





I manage the Southern Forest Health and Invasive Species Program (www.southernforesthhealth.net) which I created with US Forest Service support in 2015. This program provides free education to professionals across the southern region and beyond, including a webinar series, fact sheets and videos, and workshops. This program has delivered in-person training programs to all 13 southeastern states and produced dozens of webinars, with an average of >450 live and on-demand viewers per webinar. Continued funding for this program is provided by the USDA Forest Service and USDA APHIS.


Key Extension Activities Include:

1.  The Bradford Pear Bounty program (https://www.clemson.edu/extension/bradford-pear/) program encourages South Carolina landowners to remove a Bradford pear tree in exchange for a free native replacement tree. This program has taken place in several cities throughout South Carolina and so far we have exchanged >1,500 trees. This program has been featured on several TV shows and print media pages, including a full-page story in The New York Times.




















2.  Writing for the Clemson Home and Garden Information Center (https://hgic.clemson.edu/)





3.  Handling media requests for forest and tree health issues and invasive pests.









4.  Providing continuing education opportunities for Clemson Extension personnel, as well as other professionals in the state, region, and nation.