(NAPERVILLE, IL. June 25)- Tree Research and Education Endowment Fund (TREE Fund) is proud to announce its Spring 2026 Grant and Scholarship recipients.

After a rigorous review process, which first involved a committee of anonymous, volunteer experts spending hours looking through 76 separate applications and then receiving final approval during the TREE Fund Board of Trustees May meeting, two research grants, three education grants, and nine student scholarships are being awarded after applications were submitted from the Spring 2026 Application Cycle.

Over $58,160 in research grant money is being awarded during this cycle, with grant money being put towards projects that are focusing on utility arboriculture and the nursery industry.

The Utility Arborist Research Fund Grant, which supports research that benefits utility tree care professionals, is being awarded to Michael Demchick of the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point for the project "Use of Prescribed Fire and Barrens Seeding in Power Line Rights-of-Way as a Mechanism of Vegetation Management and Ecological Restoration" in the amount of $49,538.

The Barborinas Family Fund Grant, which funds studies that focus on the processes of the nursery industry, is being awarded to Kristopher Criscione of Virginia Polytechnic Institution and State University for the project, "Skipping the Shift- Investigating Root Pruning Techniques to Accelerate Root Growth and Reduce Production Times" in the amount of $8,630.

Three education grants are being awarded this spring. Education grants support programs that educate the public about the importance of trees and their care.

Two grants are being awarded from The Davey Tree Expert Company Community Arboriculture Education Grant Program for $5,000 each. The first is awarded to Mayra Rodriguez Gonzalez and The University of Connecticut Foundation, Inc. for their "Leveraging Drone Technology for Arboriculture and Urban Forestry" program. The second award is going to Alicia Holloway and the Georgia Tree Council for their "Community Tree Advocate Academy" program.

The Ohio Chapter ISA Education Grant is being awarded to Carly Kallicragas and the Cleveland Zoological Society for their "Teen Workforce Development and Leadership Program: Arboriculture" program for $5,000.

Nine student scholarships are being awarded this cycle for $5,000 each. The Robert Felix Memorial Scholarship Program is awarding five scholarships to Trell Amoss of Oklahoma State University, Liam Ellis of the College of William & Mary, Gabriel Koezler of West Virginia University, Marina Lancaster of the University of Vermont, and Cale Rice of the Pennsylvania College of Technology.

Additional scholarship recipients from this cycle include Elizabeth Corrie of the University of Missouri receiving the Bonnie Appleton Memorial Scholarship; Owen Kocher of Southern Illinois University Carbondale receiving the Larry R. Hall Memorial Scholarship; Madelyn Leger of the University of Kentucky receiving the Will Nutter Memorial Scholarship; and Keely Zuber of the University of Massachusetts Amherst receiving the Fran Ward Women in Arboriculture Scholarship.

TREE Fund is a non-profit organization whose mission is to support scientific discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in the fields of arboriculture and urban forestry. TREE Fund promotes scientific inquiry designed to benefit commercial, residential, utility and consulting arborists, urban foresters, and other professionals in related fields in their shared work to create, support and sustain vibrant urban canopies. TREE Fund offers ten grant and six scholarship programs during fall and spring application cycles. More information can be found at www.treefund.org.