We are excited to welcome four student interns to Starhill Forest for the summer months!

Jacob Nunez, a Williamsville native, is going into his senior year at Illinois College with an Environmental Studies major with a double minor in Economics and Mathematics. Jacob says that one of the main reasons he applied to be an Arboretum intern is to learn more about plant species and how to maintain them, as that may lead to finding a new love in this field. He also looks forward to working all summer with the team and growing as a unit together.

Emily Corbridge from Jacksonville, Illinois is double majoring in Biology with an Ecology concentration and German at Illinois College. An avid traveler, Emily says, “I’d like to learn more about Starhill’s oaks and the rare trees from different regions of the world.”
Rach Helmich of Virginia, Illinois is a senior Biology major with a concentration in ecology at Illinois College. Rach loves plants and being outdoors and knew that the Arboretum would be the perfect place for her to gain experience. She plans to use all she learns one day as she hopes to enter the field doing similar work. She is excited to be part of the team this summer and can’t wait to learn all she can with them.

Dalton Presswood is soon to be a junior at Lincoln College, majoring in Conservation Biology. Dalton came to work with us at the suggestion of his faculty advisor, Dr. Julia Ossler—a Starhill intern alum! Dalton loves the outdoors and loves to spend time on the water fishing and boating. He is looking to make new connections and friends over the summer at Starhill.

We look forward to a busy summer with this crew!