Reaping the Benefits<\/strong><\/p>\nThe support continues with current Department of Plant Biology chair, professor Don Kobayashi, who has accompanied Flagler on many site visits to arrange placements of Rutgers HT interns. And just as Chin helped Flagler put the first brick in the wall, Kobayashi has helped Flagler cement the program for the next generation of HT students. Anticipating Flagler\u2019s pending retirement, Kobayashi worked with Flagler to install a new director of the HT program. And who better to take the reins than one of Flagler\u2019s former students and a graduate of the Rutgers HT certificate program?<\/p>\n
Gary Altman, a registered horticultural therapist, is the new program director, and\u00a0in addition to carrying on Flagler’s legacy at Rutgers,\u00a0Altman plays a key role at AHTA, serving on the national board of directors.<\/p>\n
Kobayashi is pleased to see that Flagler\u2019s legacy is secure and will continue to grow, acknowledging that had it not been for Flagler founding the program, it would not be on anyone\u2019s radar. \u201cHe has built it to a level of worldwide recognition, where we regularly get inquiries from international people of interest about taking our courses,\u201d says Kobayashi. \u201cWhen people try to find educational courses that will lead to them developing their own, they come to Rutgers first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Flagler can look back on a legacy where he has helped establish many HT programs and amassed numerous media interviews and awards. But what he relishes most are the comments, feedback, and successes he observes in his HT clients.<\/p>\n
A recovering stroke victim who considered giving up on life found purpose through their rehab facility\u2019s HT program and admitted, \u201cI gained so much of my range of motion and skills with my hands that now I can feed, dress and toilet myself, and now I\u2019m a passionate gardener.\u201d In a program held at Rutgers Gardens for youth from a correctional facility, one participant said, \u201cIf I ever run out of money, I can grow my own food now.\u201d Another youth participant learning green industry skills went on to apply and was admitted to Rutgers.<\/p>\n
From the initial seed planted in 1970, a new Rutgers program took hold, was nurtured, and grew. The seeds have now been sown so that another horticultural industry now flourishes in the Garden State, thanks to Joel Flagler and the supportive people who have been in his path.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Anyone who has marveled at the growth from seed to sprout and bud to bloom, relished the aroma of herbs, or found themselves calmed in the presence of greenery, can understand the restorative power of plants. But professor and Bergen County agricultural and natural resources agent Joel Flagler (CC ’74), a registered horticultural therapist, has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"kia_subtitle":"The Horticultural Therapy program at Rutgers blossomed from alum Joel Flagler's (Cook '74) undergraduate inspiration and the support he received along the way","_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[11],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=516"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":875,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516\/revisions\/875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev-explorations.pantheonsite.io\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}