Local Colorado Springs landscaping company, Timberline Landscaping, has partnered with the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado to create an Intro to Landscape and Irrigation course curriculum at Falcon High School. Timberline is also launching six internships to support the program and give the students real-world experiences.
David Kranz, the Career Tech Ed instructor who helped launch the program alongside Timberline Landscaping, saw value in the program from the start.
“I try to run a traditional agricultural program in a non-traditional setting,” Kranz said. “A lot of landscaping needs to be done in our area due to HOA rules, which is a great learning opportunity for the students, and the ALCC referred me to Timberline for the course.”
Not only does the curriculum provide classroom learning in the landscaping and irrigation realm, but it also provides feedback on real-world professionalism – including resume, cover letter and interview training, along with valuable internship experiences through Timberline Landscaping.
The initiative behind the high school partnership is sparked by the desire to grow the landscape and irrigation industry in Colorado Springs.
“It has been a fantastic initiative, which we are hoping more landscape companies will get involved with,” said Stephanie Early, Chief Strategy Officer for Timberline Landscaping. “There is a shortage of workers in our industry, specifically in the realm of irrigation.”
Overall, the program has proven to be educational and enjoyable for the students, and has left a positive impact on the school.
“I thoroughly enjoyed it,” said Kranz. “I can’t say enough about how great Timberline is and how helpful they were to me and my students. I could not have done it without Timberline.”
For more information on the high school program, go to the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado’s website.
