THE NALP EXPERIENCE
Inside the Minds of Current Landscape Students—Your Future Employees SURE, YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE THINKING about the job openings you need to fill at your landscape business and the work you need to get done regardless of if you fill them or not. But do you know what your future employees are thinking? We asked current horticulture students who are attending NALP’s National Collegiate Landscape Competition about their career goals and why they think the industry has a hard time filling open positions.
ABBY DENNING, MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT STUDYING HORTICULTURE WITH A FOCUS ON LANDSCAPE DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND MANAGEMENT AND VICE PRESIDENT OF MICHIGAN STATE’S STUDENT HORTICULTURE ASSOCIATION WHAT WAS YOUR SINGLE FAVORITE EXPERIENCE AT NCLC IN 2019? The Michigan State team went hiking in the mountains after we had taken our qualifying exams in the morning. It was a great time to relax and get to know people on our team better. There are so many different events in the competition. As a result, you gain a respect for your peers who compete in events that you would consider difficult. WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO AT NCLC IN 2020? I am looking forward to hosting this year. There is a lot of work that our professors and NALP put into this event. It has been interesting to play a minor part in planning the student reception. I also had the opportunity to meet other students in the industry at NALP’s LANDSCAPES show as a student ambassador, so I am looking forward to seeing them again. WHAT DO YOU WISH LANDSCAPE PROFESSIONALS WOULD KNOW ABOUT YOUR CAREER GOALS THAT YOU DON’T THINK THEY ARE AWARE OF TODAY? Within my career goals, I would still like to advocate and promote the industry. Helping the public to understand the landscape industry is extremely important as our culture is slowly transitioning to be more environmentally conscious. WHY DO YOU THINK LANDSCAPE PROFESSIONALS HAVE SUCH A CHALLENGING TIME FILLING OPEN POSITIONS AT THEIR BUSINESSES? WHAT DO YOU THINK THEY COULD CHANGE TO IMPROVE THIS SITUATION? I think that landscape professionals have a hard time filling positions because the labor force is changing as the education system pushes students into other career paths. Landscaping requires a unique skill set and appreciation for the work that we accomplish. Additionally, general misconceptions allow for this industry to get overlooked when there are many opportunities for successful careers. Continuing professionalism and having a willingness to change as a business are ways that businesses can improve this situation and attract employees. WHAT ARE YOUR CAREER GOALS? I am currently a junior, so I have one more summer to spend before entering the workforce. Last summer, I did an internship with Ruppert Landscape in Baltimore, Maryland. I learned an incredible amount in the area of commercial landscaping. This summer, I’m looking to stay closer to home and diversify my experiences, potentially working in the areas of floral design, marketing, extension or farming. It is important to me that I explore the horticulture industry before I likely work for a landscaping company, which is where my passion began.
16 The Landscape Professional //January/February 2020
