Natalie LaVen was inspired by a commercial for landscape design and this led her directly to the Horticulture degree program at MATC’s Mequon Campus. According to LaVen, “It is a diverse field and the college has broken it down into three specific areas for the student to choose from: Design, Maintenance and Greenhouse.”

As an arborist, LaVen will concentrate on diagnosis and tree health. She explains that, “You can’t see tree decay from the outside, so it’s a science of finding out what’s going on inside.

A tree can be affected by many things. a natural element in the soil, the root system, a disease or an insect.” Some of us may be familiar with the Emerald Ash Borer that was seen here in Wisconsin as of August 2008. This summer, LaVen organized her internship with the City of Milwaukee doing Urban Forestry.

“We will be performing Ash Tree inventory on Milwaukee’s south side. The Ash Borer is becoming an epidemic. Unfortunately, we may lose a few trees. but it will not be an entire city’s worth.” LaVen went on to say, “Having diversity keeps your trees alive.”

Natalie stressed how the Horticulture program offers career fairs and year round job board posts.

And the student’s advisors work tirelessly on getting them involved in this ever-changing industry. The top employers in the field look at the college’s graduates first.

According to LaVen, “Some of the students are being supported by their employers, so they learn more about the business. It is the best Horticulture program in the southeastern Milwaukee area. You have to be a go-getter.”

After graduation, LaVen will continue to blaze her trail at Concordia University, which offers programs in Biology and Environmental Science.

The instructors at both institutions have partnered in streamlining the programs so they are specifically tailored for the Horticulture students.

“I think it’s a great opportunity and it is empowering, it’s not just manual labor. It is an ever-growing science and a field of continuous knowledge,” said LaVen.