Scholarships
ALAN PARKER SCHOLARSHIP
NZ Arb is pleased to announce ‘The Alan Parker Scholarship’ - a new scholarship programme to support and encourage who aspire to advance their skills into more specialised arboriculture areas, and develop their independent assessment, contractual and research, and process skill through the New Zealand Diploma in Arboriculture (Level 6) at Wintec / Te Pūkenga.
Students will gain advanced knowledge of tree health and management and be seen as a specialist in urban forest management for planning and development decision making.
Alan passed away in January 2023, and the scholarship has been created to
commemorate him and his contribution to New Zealand arboriculture.
He was a founding member of NZ Arb and has delivered decades of service to this
profession. He started one of New Zealand’s first arboricultural companies with Martin
Herbert and Gavin Donaldson back in the 1970s. The business did well and they made
regular appearances on the 1980’s TV series Dig This, where they provided helpful advice
to New Zealanders about pruning, tree climbing, and tree care. They landed contracts in
the Nelson area after a Parks and Recreation Conference in 1981 and went on to
work in Tauranga and New Plymouth as their skill pruning trees using harnesses,
rather than the older method of ladders, began to be noticed.
In 2022, Alan was awarded the New Zealand Arboricultural Association Inc. Ronald Flook Award. The Award is to elevate and recognise high standards of practice in Arboriculture, including tree raising, tree health and management and amenity tree protection or design. The recipient will have demonstrated exceptional management of trees, whether functional or aesthetic in any stage of development. For more information about the Ron Flook Award, click here.
‘Alan is one of the unsung heroes of our industry’.
The Alan Parker Scholarship is open to anyone who meets the Wintec Level 6 entry criteria here. It is also open for those who have already applied and been approved for the starting Semester 1 2024.
Number of scholarships available: Three
Scholarship Award Amount: $3000 each to go towards tuition fees
Applications Open: 1 August 2023
Applications Close: 31 October 2023 and will be announced at the NZ Arb Annual Conference in November.
Application Process:
To apply, download and complete the application form here and return by email to admin@nzarb.org.nz before 31 October 2023.
The winning applicants will be notified mid-November 2023. The $3000 scholarship payment will be made to the institution upon proof of entry approval by Wintec or reimbursed to the student if they have already paid their tuition fees.
Special thanks to Chelsea Robertson for initiating the Alan Parker Scholarship with support from Seb Bainbridge. And, Rick Jobbitt (Arb-Eco), Sean McBride (The Tree Consultancy Company) and Jane and David Snowton for donating funds towards the three awards.
