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Boring in on a big hort assignment:
Build a garden deck. |
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Chances are excellent that you have seen Kristin Thiel Gies on TV. A 2002 graduate in landscape horticulture, she stars in MATC's new commercials. She became an MATC convert after her first stab at higher education didn’t work out. Now a student at Concordia University, Gies is on her way to becoming a college instructor.
This spring, she will earn the distinction of becoming the first person to graduate from Concordia with a master’s degree in environmental science. She intends to teach horticulture and environmental science at the college level. Her area of study focuses on erosion, soil and plants – particularly on how certain plants can both forecast and be used to counter dangerous environmental trends.
“They’re called indicator species,” she explains. “We can study certain plant and insect cycles to help us to understand our environment and learn how to protect it. We can also use certain species of plants to restore soil that was once saturated with toxins. For example, poplar trees will soak up and remove chemicals from the |
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soil. . . When we learn that these plants are in a certain condition, it helps us to know how to treat other plants and the environment. We can plant certain species in an area to equalize the chemicals and restore the land.”
Inspired by MATC Instructors
Her desire to teach was fueled by the example of her horticulture instructors at MATC. “They are extremely dynamic - masters in their field,” she says. “The life experiences they brought to the classroom came out in their teaching. And the teachers go out of their way to help you find your niche. Now I want to teach people how important horticulture and environmental sciences are. My dream is to work with the teachers at MATC in that field.” |
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Melinda Myers, one of Gies’ instructors, says that her enthusiasm sets her apart. “She took quite a while to find her path in life. It was so wonderful to watch her find her way, and grow and develop. She would be a great teacher because she’s walked the path of not knowing where she wanted to go. She’s good at guiding and inspiring people, and she has the people skills necessary to be a good teacher.”
Found Answers in Own Back Yard
Gies began her studies at MATC after a short stint at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. UWM’s landscape design program had been discontinued, and Gies felt uncertain about her future. The Mequon native was amazed to find the answer to her problems in her own back yard – the highly regarded landscape horticulture program at the Mequon Campus.
During Gies’ last semester, she concurrently took courses at Concordia. Only six months after getting her MATC associate degree, she graduated from Concordia with a BA in environmental horticulture. She then landed a job as a horticulture assistant for the University of Wisconsin Extension-Waukesha, traveling |
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Kristin Thiel Gies became an MATC convert in horticulture school. |
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around the area diagnosing horticulture questions and problems for the public, teaching gardening to a variety of groups and answering the horticulture help line.
Married MATC Classmate
As icing on the cake so to speak, Gies came away from MATC with more than a degree and a career. She met her husband, Mike, a fellow student in the landscape horticulture program. The classmates fell in love and married in 2004.
In the fall of 2005, Gies agreed to appear in one of MATC’s new commercials for the current “Redefine Smart” campaign. It was her second experience as a media star on behalf of the college. She earlier had been featured in a widely published story about changing perceptions of community colleges.
Gies currently works full time in Concordia’s Admissions Office while finishing her master’s degree. It’s all part of the plan, she emphasizes. She is fine tuning her people skills and learning other aspects of higher education on the job. Then, it’s on to what she sees as her true calling in life: positively influencing the future as a college professor in her own right. “I want to be able to say I had a hand saving our planet,” she says. “I want to make the planet a little greener.”
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