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Students, forester ask Burien to help save school campus forest after district cancels restoration contracts
Summary
A forester and two student leaders from Big Picture High School asked the Burien City Council on March 24 to intervene after the Highline School District canceled stewardship contracts that would have supported a student‑planted campus forest.
A forester and student leaders from Big Picture High School asked the Burien City Council on March 24 to contact the Highline School District and preserve a student‑built urban forest on their campus after the district canceled contracts that would have funded stewardship.
“Big picture students formed a tree team and have put over 1,000 hours into this forest since they took it over in October of 2022,” forester Crystal German told the council. German said the forest was researched, designed and planted by students in collaboration with Waskowitz environmental leadership and service classes and funded in part by neighborhood matching grants and green‑city partnerships.
Why it matters: Students and volunteers have invested years of labor into the site; outside partners had committed funds and technical help that would have supported ongoing stewardship. Community members said the forest is a teaching resource and a restoration site that contributes to the city’s canopy goals.
German said the Washington State Department of Natural Resources had nearly $100,000 available to continue stewardship and that Snohomish and King Conservation Districts had agreed to help manage the site, but that in January 2025 the Highline School District canceled contracts that would have allowed the funding and stewardship to proceed. The forester said school‑district staff did not contact the project team to explain the decision.
A student co‑leader, Lachlan Gherman, told the council the project had led to paid steward positions and scholarship opportunities and said the project “means a lot to me.” He asked the council to “help us save our forest” and encouraged creative planning so new buildings could be designed with the forest in mind, rather than removing it for construction staging.
Ending: Councilmembers did not announce any immediate formal action; speakers asked city staff and elected officials to reach out to the Highline School District to explore options to retain and continue stewardship of the campus forest.
