Jamestown Community College students and officials are pictured with a tree that has just been planted.

Jamestown Community College is preparing to celebrate its 15th consecutive Tree Campus USA designation from the Arbor Day Foundation with ceremonial tree plantings from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on April 23.

“We welcome the community to gather at the front of the Science Center and participate in the event,” said Andy Pitoniak, assistant professor of Biology at JCC. “In order to maintain our Tree Campus designation, we must show a commitment to maintaining and improving the trees on campus. This day is a fun piece of our ongoing efforts.”

Tree Campus USA is a national program that was created in 2008 to honor colleges and universities for effective campus forest management, and engaging staff and students in conservation goals. JCC received its first designation in 2009 and was the first community college in New York to achieve this designation.

“Tree campuses must plant one tree every year for Arbor Day,” Pitoniak said. “We also have to keep and regularly update a tree management plan, maintain a tree committee, have students involved through service learning, and designate a budget for the trees and their maintenance.”

According to the Arbor Day Foundation, trees on campus and in urban spaces can lower energy costs by providing shade cover, cleaner air and water, and green spaces for students and faculty. Shaded areas for studying and gathering make campuses more visually appealing, and trees have been shown to improve students’ mental and cognitive health.

The Tree Campus celebration is sponsored by the JCC Tree Committee and Sustainability Committee.