Davey Tree Flipbooks

T ravel to Kent, meet 50 fellow employees, learn many new things, study (a lot), take some exams and bring home loads of information to apply on the job. The four weeks Davey Institute of Tree Sciences (DITS) students spend in Kent, Ohio, for classroom presentations and outdoor exercises on everything tree care may seem students how to use what they learned at DITS once they returned to the field. Although course structure and material were challenging—11-hour days, six days a week of practical tree care, technical sciences and management skills—acquiring knowledge about Davey, practicing new tree care tech- niques and meeting other employees seemed well-worth the effort to many DITS attendees. In fact, several considered it to be a "life-changing experience." "DITS taught me how to be a better leader," says Juan Perez, production manager at the Cincinnati CLS territory. "I went back with so much energy that I didn't have before." Focused and driven Davey employees learn how to improve their tree skills and build their careers at DITS. And the Winners Are… Kyle Omholt, DITS attendee and plant health care technician from The Care of Trees Naperville office, enjoyed and appreciated the opportunity to learn in a classroom setting, an attitude that earned him the Golden Oak Award. "I learned a lot about all the different avenues of Davey," he says. Not only did Omholt excel on his DITS exams and other supple- mental classroom material, but he also recognizes the benefits of his training experience in the field. "DITS will benefit my career by helping me establish contacts all across Davey," Omholt says, adding the communication and leadership training he and classmates received in week four will help him work better with others and become a better leader. Two other DITS attendees received special recognition for their hard work and efforts during the experience. Greensboro R/C's Stephen George and St. Louis West R/C's Ted Smick won Instructors' Awards for demonstrating a passion for learning combined with a generous willingness to share knowledge with others. "Being able to interact with others and learning how much alike our offices are is interesting," says Stephen George, foreman at Davey's Greensboro R/C office. "And meeting everyone from different offices reinstates why I work for Davey." Smick, foreman at Davey's St. Louis West R/C office, agrees it was great to meet employees from Davey locations throughout the country. "I could see where all the passion comes from the work we do," he says. May/June 2015 | 11 "DITS was amazing. I definitely came here knowing the fundamentals of tree care, but going through the training has opened my mind to a whole new world— different cultures and accents, too. Davey is like a second family." – Kyle Lemesurier, Muskoka North office like a whirlwind, but what it all comes down to is this: DITS is designed to help employees become better problem solvers in the field. "DITS will hopefully help you develop the ability to think and ask the right questions," says Jim Zwack, director of technical services for the Davey Institute, as he addressed this year's 51 DITS students. "You may not always know the answer, but this is a collaborative effort and we have myriad resources for you through- out Davey." This year's schedule even featured a new class called "Train the Trainer," which showed Alison Herrell, Philip Templeton and Sean Zieche participate in a diagnostics lab exercise. Eric VanWormer climbs high during one of the DITS outdoor exercises at the Davey Institute.

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