The WSU student chapter, known simply on campus as “Forestry Club” is dedicated to the expansion the forestry education of any student interested in the field, regardless of their major. Pursuant to this, the club conducts chainsaw trainings, woodcuttings, and other activities meant to provide our membership with hands-on experience with many of the tools they will encounter while working in the field in most natural resource based disciplines and careers.
Even in the face of the pandemic, WSU SAF has maintained a strong presence on campus, working on various projects at the E.H Steffen Center, including assisting Dr. Mark Swanson, the club faculty advisor, with site preparations for an on going study into the impacts of down woody debris on microsites and seedling survival.
Most recently, the club aided WSU professor emeritus David Baumgartner in planting a new stand of ponderosa pine on his property near Pullman. We continue our stewardship over Magpie Forest Ecological Reserve, having plans to very soon increase our presence and impact at the site, and we provide our membership recreational and social opportunities including our annual spring semester snowshoeing trip to Moscow Mountain and our very popular bonfires at the E.H. Steffen Center. In the fall, the club puts its chainsaw skills to work bucking and preparing firewood for sale during Cougar football games to provide funds for club activities and equipment maintenance.
Student Advisor: Dr. Mark Swanson, markswanson@wsu.edu