Our People
One of our best assets at VIU is our teaching staff. The Forestry Department is made up of professional foresters with a wide variety of backgrounds and expertise in forest land management that includes silviculture, engineering, wildfire, ecology, forest health, research, and GIS—as well as international and First Nations forestry. Our varied perspectives and expertise provide students with an excellent introduction to the original green science – forestry!
Allow us to introduce ourselves to you!
Click on the faces below to learn about our teaching staff:
Bill Beese, MF, RPF
University-College Professor
"I believe that the foundation of effective teaching is a passion for the subject matter. Education should foster critical thinking, problem solving and a desire for continual learning. I'm excited to be at VIU to help support students in their pursuit of a rewarding career. "
Bill has over 30 years of experience on the BC coast in research, environmental consulting and policy development for several forest companies—most recently as Forest Ecologist for Western Forest Products in Campbell River. He is a Registered Professional Forester with a Master’s degree in Forest Ecology from the University of British Columbia.
His research has focused on silvicultural systems, prescribed burning, forest regeneration and biodiversity. He has served on numerous research advisory and review committees, and working groups on old growth forests and ecosystem-based management. He was recently a member of an international science panel advising Forestry Tasmania on implementation of variable retention in old-growth eucalyptus forests. Bill also co-authored two chapters in the book Forestry and Biodiversity (UBC Press 2009).
Awards:
- Coastal Silviculturist of the Year in 2000
- Ecological Society of America’s Corporate Award in 2001
- BC Forest Professional magazine Best Article in 2008
Contact info:
Building: 370
Room: 223
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2260
Mail drop: 360
Email: Bill.Beese@viu.ca
Doug Corrin, MSc in GIS, RPF
Forestry Department Chair and University-College Professor
"I believe being current in the field is critical to being a good teacher."
Doug has been working as a forestry consultant on the coast of BC for over 27 years. Most of his work focuses on operational silviculture. His education includes a Bachelor of Science in Forestry degree from UBC, a Post-Graduate Certificate in GIS from SFU and a Master of Science in GIS from Manchester Metropolitan. In 1990 he joined the Forestry Department at VIU. He has taught a wide variety of courses over the years and currently delivers courses in forest pathology, forest entomology, GIS and forest biometrics.
Doug designed the Tree Doctor, an online information and diagnostic tool for BC forest pests. In addition to teaching, he also currently works as a professional forester during the summer months, primarily on Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) with a focus on silviculture operations, ecological site diagnosis, silviculture prescriptions and forest management planning.
Contact info:
Building: 370
Room: 220
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2231
Mail drop: 360
Email: Doug.Corrin@viu.ca
Instructor page for Doug Corrin
Kathi Davis, RFT, RPF
Department Technologist
"One of my favorite quotes is by John Muir, "The mountains are calling, and I must go". I found my calling that summer day when I was 10 and my dad took me into the woods for the first time to see where he worked. I have pursued other things in my life but the mountains have always called me back."
Kathi, grew up in small coastal logging towns in BC and after high school started her forestry career as a tree planter. She is a graduate of the Forest Resource Technology program at VIU and is both a Registered Professional Forester and a Registered Forest Technologist. She is the Department Technologist providing assistance to both instructors and students in class and during field labs.
Kathi has a strong background in silviculture - she is a Silviculture Accredited Surveyor (SAS) and is the provincial Silviculture Surveyor Accreditation examiner for the BC South Coast Region. In the past, she has taught silviculture survey techniques to summer students and performed silviculture surveys on the VIU Woodlot. Kathi has also been a Sessional Instructor at VIU for a variety of courses including ecology, forest measurements, forest silvics and dendrology, forest resource computer applications and communications.
Kathi owns and manages a forest resource consulting company that works for a variety of industry, government, and First Nations clients providing silviculture survey and related training, silvicultural assessments, post harvest project management, compliance audits, and the establishment and maintenance of research trials, as well as many other professional forestry services.
Contact info:
Building: 360
Room: 331
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2287
Mail drop: 360
Email: Kathi.Davis@viu.ca
Pat Hayes, FRT
Sessional Instructor
"I'm a strong believer in providing mentorship and transferring my knowledge to new forest professionals. "
Pat has spent 30 years specializing in wildfire management with the BC Forest Service. He is a graduate of the of BCIT Forest Technology program. He has held numerous senior management positions (District Protection Officer, Zone Manager) throughout his career and worked in the areas of fire prevention, preparedness, detection and response. He developed and delivered staff training programs for mentorship and the development of fire officers “in training”.
He brings his fire expertise to VIU as the instructor for the Fire Management course. To ensure his knowledge remains current, Pat continues to provide specialist strategic fire management consultation to the B.C. Wildfire Management Branch.
Awards
- Governor General’s Exemplary Fire Service of Canada medal and bar 2009
Contact info:
Building:
Room:
Phone:
Mail drop:
Email: Pat.Hayes@viu.ca
Michel Vallee, BSF, RPF
University-College Professor
"For the past 12 years I've worked with colleagues to develop an international network of post secondary forestry education opportunities for students at VIU and other Canadian forestry schools. It allows students to participate in international exchange and study forestry abroad study for term. "
Michel hails originally from Quebec and has been working in the industry in Alberta and BC for more than 29 years. He graduated as a Forest Resources Technologist from Selkirk College and from the University of British Columbia with a degree in Forest Resource Management. He has had a varied career from working in provincial parks to operational forestry for both industry and government before joining VIU. In addition, he is experienced in wood product marketing as a full partner in a private forest products company that specialized in the Asian market providing timber development and custom cutting. He has brought his wide range of experience and perspective to VIU for the past 20 years teaching silviculture, soil science and forest policy.
Michel is a proponent of advocating for and educating about the scientifically based forest management. He has been an active member of the Canadian Institute of Forestry since college – holding various positions at the national and local level. As an educator he has been involved with a number of national and regional committees on forestry education including the BC forestry articulation committee.
Awards:
- CIF International Forestry Achievement Award 2009
Michel is responsible for coordinating the international activities in the Forestry Department.
Contact info:
Building: 370
Room: 213
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2340
Mail drop: 360
Email: Michel.Vallee@viu.ca
Instructor page for Michel Vallee
Marise Wickman, MF, RPF
University-College Professor
“I've explored and assessed extensive areas of old growth ecosystems throughout Vancouver Island. I can't imagine a career outside of forestry.”
Marise worked in the industrial forest sector with a focus on operational silviculture, ecological site diagnosis and the preparation of silviculture prescriptions after graduating from UBC. Opportunities to travel by boat, helicopter and float plane have exposed Marise to the rugged beauty of the coastal forests and mountains. She returned to UBC to complete a Master of Forestry degree and a Diploma in Advanced Silviculture.
Marise joined the Forestry Department at VIU in 2007 and teaches forest ecology, site diagnosis, integrated resources management and forest botany.
She is responsible for the Biosolids Fertilization program for the VIU Forest. This project allows the Department to demonstrate modern practices in forestry and ecology - it provides a model for how we can improve the health of our forests in an ecologically sensible way and help the Regional District of Nanaimo divert biosolids from its landfill site.
Contact info:
Building: 370
Room: 120
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2232
Mail drop: 360
Email: Marise.Wickman@viu.ca
Jim Wilkinson, BSF, RPF
University-College Professor and Associate Chair of Forestry
Jim was a member of the first graduating class of the Forest Resource Technology program at VIU (then Malaspina College). He went on to get his Bachelor of Science in Forestry degree from UBC and become a Registered Professional Forester. Before coming to teach at VIU, Jim worked in the forest industry working for forest companies specializing in forest harvesting and road construction. He brings his valuable experience in these areas to the VIU students.
In addition to teaching field skills, Spatial Data, Forest Harvest Planning, Road Construction and Information Technology, Jim is also the Manager of the VIU Forest. He still practices forestry in his role as Manager of the VIU Forest. He is responsible for managing all aspects of the forest including planning, harvesting, silvicultural activities and public relations.
Contact info:
University-College Professor
Building: 359
Room: 211
Phone: (250) 753-3245, Local 2031
Mail drop: 359
Email: Jim.Wilkinson@viu.ca