Randolph students continue hands-on work with old-growth forests

Alana Ellis ’26, left, and Wednesday Hertzberg ’26 work with samples in the lab.

This summer, Alana Ellis ’26 and Wednesday Hertzberg ’26 picked up right where they left off, returning to their internships with the 500 Year Forest Foundation.

The environmental science majors have spent the past several summers interning with the foundation, a nonprofit that works to preserve old-growth forests, which provide vital ecosystem services, promote biodiversity, and store carbon, which helps reduce the effects of climate change.

This year they split their time between field and lab work, taking measurements for field inventories, removing invasive species from some of the properties, and analyzing samples back in the lab. 

“We added some extra measurements to our field inventories,” Hertzberg explained. “Then we write reports on these forests that we give to the landowners. There is a lot of information we can directly give them, like if they have some invasives that need to be removed. But there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work that you wouldn’t see by eye.” 

The collaboration between Randolph and the nonprofit 500-Year Forest Foundation began in 2019 when professor Karin Warren was appointed to its board of directors. The organization didn’t have its own staff to conduct field research, so Warren began recruiting student interns. 

Over the past three summers, Warren has coordinated the intern program. Funding was provided by the foundation, and Gabe Quintero ’23, the foundation’s forest coordinator, served as the supervisor. 

Hertzberg and Ellis have enjoyed returning each summer. For them, it’s not just a job—it’s an experience that blends hands-on learning with a deeper connection to the land. 

“I like preserving the old growth,” Hertzberg said. “And being able to walk around these privately owned forests, that I wouldn’t normally be able to access, is really awesome.”