2. Introduction
*Increase BMP knowledge and skill set for landscape
professionals
*maximizing urban landscape aesthetics
*protect and conserve natural resources
*Benefits
*increase plant success in landscapes
*become stewards of the environment
*increase revenue for landscape professionals
3. Nature of Work
*Currently no experience
required for SC landscape
professionals
*Potential for improper
management by untrained
professionals
*Conservation-based
management practices
*Plant success in the urban
landscape
4. Nature of Work
* Identify and target stakeholders
* landscape contractors
* municipalities
* companies with in-house landscape maintenance
* Model strategic areas
* Greenville-Spartanburg
* Florence
* Charleston
* Modes of gaining stakeholder input
* comparison of other programs
* survey
* regional workshops
5. Results: Program Comparison
ELC GGIA PLANET UGA NCNLA
Participant Cost $165 $700 $379 $225
How Long to
Complete 2 yrs 3 yrs 1 yr
Written Exam yes yes yes yes yes
Hands-on Exam yes yes yes no yes
CEUs 15 12 PLANET
Retest Fee
(hands-
on/written) $45 $50 $30 $25
Online Testing yes no no
6. Survey Results:
Importance of Earning Certification
1
6% 2
8%
3
18%
4
37%
5
31%
1. Not Important
2. Somewhat Important
3. Moderately Important
4. Very Important
5. Extremely Important
Professional
1
10%
2
10%
3
27%
4
22%
5
31%
Personal
7. Survey Results:
Value of Online ELC administered by CU
1. Not Important
2. Somewhat Important
3. Moderately Important
4. Very Important
5. Extremely Important
IncreasingImportance
1
6%
2
4%
3
14%
4
23%
5
53%
9. Survey Results:
Preference of Location
a
b
c
a. Home – 65%
b. Office – 34%
c. Other: hand held
device – 2%
Learning Test Taking
a. Home – 60%
b. Office – 35%
c. Other: field, proctored
room – 5%
a
b
c
10. Survey Results:
How do You Prefer to Learn Online?
a
24%
b
21%
c
5%
d
44%
e
2%
f
5%
a. Reading PowerPoint slides
b. Reading PowerPoint slides
while listening to a
narrator/speaker
c. Viewing a video with no
sound
d. Viewing a video while
listening to a
narrator/speaker
e. None of the above
f. Other: N/A
11. Results:
Learning Module Organization
* General information
* Turfgrass
* Landscape plantings
* Tree management
* Water
* Low impact development strategies
* Plant identification
* Integrate pest management
* Equipment maintenance & calibration
12. * General information
* Turfgrass
* Landscape plantings
* Tree management
* Water
* Low impact development strategies
* Plant identification,
* Integrate pest management,
* Equipment maintenance & calibration
Results:
Learning Module Organization
13. Significance to Industry
* Potential for enhancing landscape contractor
marketability
* competitive edge through knowledge gain
* Success of plant survival in landscape increase
* long term investment profitability
* Conservation and protection of natural
resources
14. The authors acknowledge the support of
Clemson University – Public Service and
Agriculture Frank Lever Initiative grant
“Development of a Certified Environmental
Landscape Professional Program” for funding
this project.
Editor's Notes
Thank you Dr. ___________. It is a pleasure to have the opportunity to introduce to you the Environmental Landscape Contractors Certification Program and discuss how we began to identify stakeholder needs for the program. This year marks the 100th anniversary for the Smith-Lever Act. This program was funded in honor of the centennial.
I feel it is very important and appropriate to give a quick infomercial about the Smith-Lever Act. Extension as we know it, began when Woodrow Wilson signed this Act into law in 1914,
We are very proud of this Act at Clemson. This is because It was based off of The Clemson Model of Extension that began from SC’s state representative and Clemson life trustee Asbury Francis Lever.
It was coauthored by Georgia’s senator Michael Smith. Without them, there would be no extension service, and land grant universities would not have a role in assisting the public with improving many facets of daily life whether for at home and or for bringing in income.
The environmental landscape certification is a joint effort being developed by Clemson faculty, students and extension agents, Spartanburg community college, and the SC NLA with by-in from SC landscape contractors, municipalities and their clients.
The goal of the program is to increase the knowledge and skill set for landscape professionals throughout South Carolina.
This includes learning up-to-date techniques on increasing landscape aesthetics as well as for protecting and conserving SCs natural resources.
In return, landscape professionals will become known to increase in plant success in urban landscapes, and as stewards of the environment., Both of which will make for happy clients that will in return recommend the professionals to other. Subsequently increasing the bottom line for the landscape professional.
In South Carolina, no experience is required for one to be considered a landscaper.
Untrained contractors may manage landscape improperly which can be potentially deleterious.
Our Program will provide the knowledge-base needed to meet client needs and expectations while using conservation-based management practices. Conservation based management practices are intended to protect and conserve water resources as well as natural habitats. Improper fertilizer application and irrigation system installation are two of the many landscape practices that can hinder water resources and ecosystem function.
Conservation based practices are also intended to increase plant success within the urban landscape
To allow the environmental landscape certification to reach its fullest potential, we have seeked the input of many different stakeholders.
Our targeted stakeholders range from small and large lawn and landscape care companies to municipalities and companies with their own in house facilities maintenance division
Three key areas were selected throughout South Carolina: Greenville, Spartanburg, Florence, and North Charleston. These areas were partially because they represent different socio-economic classes, as well as each location has extension agents with vested interest in the program
We assessed the landscape community in various ways:
First, we compared the framework of regional and national certification programs.
Second, A survey was handed out at the South Carolina Horticulture Industry Conference to receive input from the industry In order to gain stakeholder input, Approximately 50 landscape professionals completed the survey.
Finally, half day workshops were conducted At each strategic area.
Certification programs comparison was primarily to identify how the framework of other programs are structured.
Some of the comparisons were Participant cost, time to complete the program, written exams, hands-on exams, continuing education credits, retesting fees and online testing options.
A few of the more significant findings were that there was a broad range in participant costs ranging from $165-over $700
and while that all programs had written exams, UGA program did not require a hands-on exam.
Finally, online testing was only an option with PLANT. And even then, there is still an in person mandatory test.
As I mentioned earlier, we also surveyed approximately 50 people at the annual SCHI. Our first two questions asked professionals how important was a greens industry certificate to them.
The majority said it was very to extremely important to them professionally, and moderately to extremely important to them personally.
In the past, another program existed in the state, however it was administered by a state trade association. When asked about the importance of the Certification Program being housed at clemson, over 50% responded that it was extremely important.
We noticed from our program comparison that there were no strictly web-based programs available. But in casual conversations with stakeholders, there was a recurring interest. Thus, We were intrigued about offering a web-based only certification program that allowed participants to self pace. But what we did not know is if participants would have easy reliable access to a computer and the web. When asked, the majority of our participants sad they did have access.
Besides access to a computer and web we were interested in learning and test taking environment. In both cases, the majority of respondents preferred to being at home to learn and take tests.
We were also interested in knowing how people like to learn online. Approximately 45% of respondents stated they like to view a video while there is a speaker or narrator. We intend to incorporate this in a couple different ways. First we will have a video of a classroom style workshop where we tape an instructor giving a presentation along with questions asked by the audience. And then we will also supplement with short demonstrations videos.
Among one of the most important objectives of the survey and workshops was to identify the learning modules and the depth of the information that is to be included. Here are the nine module title.
The inclusion of a general information and LID strategies were two that many current programs do not have stand alone modules on.
For examples, general information includes topics such as site assessment, common terminology, soil health and general plant biology and safety.
