Dan Burcham
Dan Burcham, a native of Montpelier, Ohio, graduated cum laude from The Ohio State University with a B.S. in Agriculture that included a major in Landscape Horticulture and a minor in International Studies. While an undergraduate, he actively engaged other students sharing similar interests through Ohio State’s Landscape and Floriculture Form, Pi Alpha Xi, and Alpha Zeta Partners. His proposal to improve the climate for diversity within the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences culminated in a college role in the President and Vice-Provost’s Diversity Lecture and Cultural Arts Series at Ohio State. The initiative earned Dan recognition as the Alpha Zeta Partners Member of the Year in 2007. His commitment to cultural plurality is mirrored by an equally avid commitment to botanical diversity and the complex relationships between plants and people.
Dan has traveled frequently to several Caribbean island states, and also participated in a study abroad program in rural sociology, natural resources, and agricultural and developmental economics at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Dan initially developed an interest in public horticulture by volunteering at Franklin Park Conservatory and the Dawes Arboretum. He interned at Green Lawn Cemetery and Arboretum in Columbus. While there, he contributed to arboricultural projects and became familiar with operational concerns for budding arboreta.
Dan is interested in utilizing horticulture as a tool for improving communities. In his research, he is investigating the dynamic between urban tree planting programs and nursery tree production. He was awarded the Louise Roselle Fellowship in Public Horticulture in 2008.
Student Position: Interview Period Coordinator / Program Identity Leader
Board Position: University of Delaware Botanic Gardens Advisory Board Member / Delaware Center for Horticulture Board Member
