Staff
| Dan Blanton | Gardener |
| Andrew Bunting | Curator |
| Bill Costello | Gardener and IPM Coordinator |
| Dwight Darkow | Gardener |
| Steve Donnelly | Athletic Fields Crew Supervisor |
| Jody Downer | Special Projects Coordinator |
| Shari Edelson | Curatorial Intern |
| Gus Eriksen | Garden Supervisor |
| Will Evans | Gardener |
| Elizabeth Haegele | Assistant Education Coordinator |
| Chuck Hinkle | Garden Supervisor |
| Jeff Jabco | Director of Grounds & Coordinator of Horticulture |
| Julie Jenney | Educational Programs Coordinator |
| Nicole Lewis | Gardener |
| Sheila Magee | Gardener |
| Rhoda Maurer | Collections Documentation & Project Manager |
| Susan McGinley | Gardener |
| Jim McKenna | Motor Pool Foreman |
| Dale Nemec | Gardener |
| Lars Rasmussen | Gardener |
| Rebecca Robert | Member and Visitor Programs Coordinator |
| Brad Rumsey | Motor Pool Assistant |
| Claire Sawyers | Director |
| Susan Stark | Gardener/Volunteer Coordinator |
| Jacqui West | Administrative Coordinator |
Dan Blanton has worked at the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College since 1976; most of those years as a member of the athletic field crew. He has registered technician status in pesticide application and integrated pest management training.
Andrew Bunting has been Curator at the Arboretum since 1993. Prior to working at the Arboretum he was Curator at the Chanticleer Foundation in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Other work experiences include the Morton Arboretum, Chicago Botanic Garden, Fairchild Tropical Gardens, Tintinhull House in England and Titoki Point in New Zealand. Andrew is a graduate of Joliet Junior College and Southern Illinois University.
William (Bill) Costello, Jr. is Gardener and IPM Coordinator at the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College. Bill received an A.S. degree in Horticulture, from Temple University, Ambler Campus. In addition, Bill has received a Series I Certificate from Longwood Gardens, attended the Penn State Cooperative Arborist School, and holds an A.S. in forestry from the Pennsylvania State University, Mont Alto Campus. Bill has previously worked for Osmose Wood Preserving Company in Buffalo, New York and Asplundh Tree Expert Company out of Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. Before beginning at Scott, he was the Assistant Grounds Supervisor at Friends Hospital in Philadelphia.
Dwight Darkow, Gardener, joined the staff in 1998. For a decade prior to that, he was owner of a landscape/nursery business in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. Dwight holds a certificate in ornamental plants from Longwood Gardens and an Associates degree in forestry from Penn College of Technology. Other work experiences include Horticulturist for Fair Acres Geriatric Center, nurseryman for a local landscape company and in park improvement projects for New Jersey Forest and Parks.
Steve Donnelly, Athletic Fields Crew Supervisor, has been working at the Scott Arboretum since 1992. He is a graduate of the Penn State Extension program for arboriculture.
Jody Downer, Special Projects Coordinator, became an Arboretum Assistant in 1989, chaired the 1991 and 1993 Plant Sales, and from 1992 to 2003 she served on Scott Associates Council. Before becoming so involved with the Scott Arboretum, Jody owned and operated Media Hardware Company for seven years and prior to that was Office Manager for 11 years with Bio Clinic Company, a medical manufacturing company.
Shari Edelson, 2007-2008 curatorial intern, previously worked as a production horticulturist at the City of Baltimore’s Cylburn Arboretum. She has also worked for Corden Landscapes in Baltimore designing, installing, and maintaining residential gardens. Prior to that, she worked as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer, managing an urban greening program which provided free horticultural education to community gardeners in Baltimore. In that capacity she organized the donation of over 10,000 trees shrubs, perennials, and annuals to community gardening groups all over the city. She also has experience as an organic farmer, having worked and lived at Cromwell Valley Community Supported Agriculture, also in Baltimore. Shari has served as a Master Gardener since 2005 and has occasionally led tours at the Howard Peter Rawlings Conservatory and Botanic Garden. Shari holds a BA from Goucher College. She has also taken horticulture classes at the University of Maryland.
Paul August (Gus) Eriksen, has been Garden Supervisor at the Arboretum since 1984. He has been in charge of the rose garden since 1993. Other work experience includes Alfred I. Dupont, Institute of the Nemours Foundation and Reynold's Dupont estate in Delaware, Kraft Nurseries in Florida and the Dupont Co. plant research lab. He holds a B.S., Agriculture in plant science from the University of Delaware.
William R. Evans, Jr., Gardener, joined the staff in 1989. Prior to that he worked at Chessick's Wholesale Greenhouses propagating poinsettias and Wolff's Farmer's Market in plant sales, orchard pruning and harvesting. In his current position, he has been involved in all types of horticultural maintenance and campus development, including assisting with the construction of the Terry Shane Teaching Garden. He pursues new horticultural education by attending classes offered by Longwood Gardens.
Elizabeth Haegele graduated from Drexel University with a B.S. in business administration in 2003. After pursuing a career related to her studies, she felt she “wanted something more fulfilling” and realized from her work with a local community garden that public horticulture would provide what she was looking for. She then went to Brooklyn and completed an eight-month horticulture internship with the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, followed by a seasonal position at Longwood Gardens in the Indoor and Outdoor Display Division. She has taken horticulture classes at Temple University’s Ambler campus. After completing her year internship as the Scott Arboretum curatorial intern, she assumed the role of Assistant Education Coordinator in Sept. 2007.
Charles Hinkle, Gardener, joined the staff full-time in 1998. Previously, he was a gardener at Friends Hospital in Philadelphia. He holds a B.S. in horticulture from Temple University, and has completed Longwood Gardens series I and II in Ornamental Plants. He is also an instructor at Temple University.
Jeff Jabco, Director of Grounds and Coordinator of Horticulture for the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College, has been on staff since 1990. Before coming to Swarthmore, he worked for Penn State University Cooperative Extension as a horticulture agent in southeastern Pennsylvania; he also owned and operated a garden design and vegetable production business. He is a graduate of Penn State University and has a Master's degree from North Carolina State University in Horticulture/Plant Breeding and Plant Pathology.
Julie Jenney returned as the Education Program Coordinator in Oct. 2007. She served in the same position at the Scott Arboretum from 1999 to 2003. During her time away from Scott Arboretum, she was the major gifts and special project coordinator at Descanso Gardens Guild in La Canada Flintridge, CA and Business Developer and Horticulturist at Estate Gardens by ValleyCrest in Los Angeles, CA. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from University of Oregon, Eugene, OR and certificates in Landscape Design and Landscape Management and Nursery Management with a major in Environmental Horticulture from College of San Mateo, CA.
Nicole Lewis, Gardener, joined the staff in 2006. Prior to graduating from Swarthmore College, she studied agriculture at the University of Maryland. She has been employed at a Chester County organic CSA farm and managed the vegetable production and environmental education programs at a Washington, DC urban farm.
Shelia Magee, Gardener, joined the staff in 2004. Prior to achieving this status, Shelia served as an active volunteer for the Scott Associates beginning in 2002. A graduate of Swarthmore College, Shelia has worked at Styer's Nurseries, has taught for the summer program at Newlin Mill Park, and has volunteered in the gardens at the Brandywine Conservancy.
Rhoda Maurer is the Collections Documentation & Project Manager. She holds degrees in Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design from Edmonds Community College and a B.A. in anthropology from the University of Washington. Her previous work experience includes an internship at the Elisabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden in Seattle and acting as a garden docent for Heronswood Nursery in Kingston, Washington. Before joining us in 1998, she spent a year training in England at The Royal Horticultural Society's Garden, Wisley. She currently serves as a PHS Gold Medal committee member and is an avid photographer.
Susan McGinley graduated with a B. S. in Horticulture from Temple University, Ambler, and a Bachelor of Science degree from Cabrini College in Radnor, PA. Before joining the horticulture staff at the Scott Arboretum in 2001, Susan worked as a research biologist, and has gardened at Chanticleer in Wayne, PA, Smith & Hawken in Rosemont, PA, and also worked with Laurie Humphrey's landscape design and maintenance firm in Haverford. Susan also completed an internship at the Tyler Arboretum in Media, PA.
Jim McKenna, has been the Motor Pool Foreman since 1985.
Dale Nemec, Gardener, has been with the staff since 2004. He comes to the Arboretum with a wealth of experience including serving as Grounds Maintenance Coordinator at Friends Hospital in Philadelphia for more than 20 years and horticulturist at Villanova University for a year. In 1999, he earned a bachelor's degree in Landscape Architecture from Temple University.
Lars Rasmussen graduated from Temple University, Ambler, with a B.S. in Horticulture and has an extensive background in growing greenhouse cut roses. Before becoming a member of the Scott Arboretum's horticultural staff in 2001, Lars was employed by Octararo Native Plant Nursery in Kirkwood, PA, and Landstudies Inc. in Litiz, PA, where his focus was stream bank restoration and wetland installation. Mt. Cuba Center for the Study of Piedmont Flora in Greenville, DE, is where Lars completed his internship, and he is presently attending the Longwood Gardens certificate classes.
Rebecca Robert has been serving as the Member and Visitor Programs Coordinator since 2004. She received a M.S. and a B.S. in horticulture at Penn State University. She has worked at a variety of nurseries and garden centers including Avalon Flower and Garden in Avalon, NJ; Snyder's Greenhouse in Leck Kill, PA; Hershey Nursery in Hershey, PA; and Meadow Creek Farms in Klingerstown, PA.
Brad Rumsey is the Motor Pool Assistant for the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College.
Claire Sawyers has been the Director of the Scott Arboretum since 1990. Prior to that she worked at Mt. Cuba Center for the Study of Piedmont Flora in Hockessin, Delaware for seven years. She holds Masters degrees in ornamental horticulture from Purdue University and the University of Delaware where she was a Longwood Graduate Fellow. She has gardened in Japan, France and Belgium in addition to the U.S. She presently serves as a commissioner for the accreditation program of the American Association of Museums.
Sue Stark holds the position of Gardener and Volunteer Coordinator at the Scott Arboretum and has been with us since 1999. Prior to that, she was a sales associate at J. Franklin Styer Nurseries in Concordville. Sue also worked at Anderson’s LaCosta Nursery in Encinitas, CA as a salesperson and landscape designer. Sue holds a B.A. in biology from Lafayette College and a Masters of Liberal Arts in environmental studies from the University of Pennsylvania and has taken horticulture classes at Mira Costa College in Oceanside, CA. Sue completed the Arboretum Studies Program at the Barnes Foundation in Merion.
Jacqui West, Adminstrative Coordinator, joined the staff in 2004 and has ample experience at Swarthmore College. Her seven years with Alumni and Gift Records and two years with Facilities Services Department has given her a variety of computer, office, information, and management skills. In addition, she is a certified Master Gardener through the Penn State Cooperative Extension.