June 21, 2016
Kansas Forest Service Welcomes New Watershed Forester
Submitted by Jennifer G. Williams
Jarran serves as a watershed forester for the Kansas Forest Service. He is a 2016 graduate of Humboldt State University, in northern California. There he earned a bachelor’s degree in forestry with an emphasis in hydrology. While in California, Jarran had the privilege to work as a Forestry Technician in the coastal redwood forests, which hold the distinction of being America’s most productive and most heavily regulated timberland.
Jarran grew up in southeast Kansas where his family farms and operates a variety of small businesses. He has worked in the area’s oilfield, construction, and agricultural industries. In addition to this, he spent several years working seasonally as a wilderness guide in central Colorado, where he first discovered the idea of making a career out of playing in the woods. In his free time, Jarran may be found pretending to be a handyman or a farmer, looking for berries to pick, or reading thick books - but always with his dear wife close by. Welcome Jarran!
Established in 1887, the Kansas Forest Service is the nation's fifth oldest state forestry agency. It serves rural landowners, communities, rural fire districts, forest and arboriculture industries, and citizens of the state. This is accomplished through its conservation tree and shrub planting, fire management, community forestry, rural forestry, marketing and utilization and forest health programs.
The agency is administratively attached to the Horticulture and Natural Resources department in the College of Agriculture.