Welcome to The Turf Zone Podcast. This episode features the article “Building the Turfgrass Manager Pipeline: A Call for Industry-Academic Partnership” written by Jay McCurdy. The larger turfgrass and landscape industry has a labor issue—mainly that there’s not a reliable pipeline for accessing young and capable employees. I have this conversation almost weekly when discussing the state of the industry and how my role in a “turfgrass program” relates. I’m now in my 12th year at Mississippi State University, so I no doubt have some ownership of the problems. But I also wanted to relay to a wider audience just what some of the solutions might be to solve this problem. Yes, higher industry pay might help, but there’s more to the story than just that. Our landscape management industry includes a broad range of job titles, but most of us reading this magazine are either boots-on-the-ground landscape managers (ex. superintendents, lawn care professionals, sports field managers, sod producers, equipment managers, etc.) or are somehow involved in the industry/supply side (sales, accounts, research and development, chemical, equipment, etc.). We know the technical mastery and skill required to do this job. We know the rewards and challenges. Nevertheless, I find the perspective from academia is often a little different from what it was when I was a practitioner. We are all concerned about a shrinking pipeline of new professionals entering our field. Turfgrass academic programs are often criticized for producing too few graduates, and those graduates are said to be underprepared for the demanding, multifaceted roles that await them. The same is said for students fresh out of high school. There’s always a debate about whether it’s generational or whatnot. Maybe there’s something to that, but what, pragmatically, can we do to figure all this out? The issue is more complex than a simple academic shortfall. The challenges facing turf programs reflect deeper structural and cultural dynamics within the larger society, as well as within the green industry and our academic institutions. I think we need to embrace a new model of mutual investment between academia and industry in order to restore vitality and sustainability to the profession. Whatever the model, it must redefine recruitment, enhance the talent pool, and demonstrate that green-industry roles are both professionally rewarding and personally sustainable. This essay outlines a vision for such a partnership, built on five key principles: shared recruitment, broader inclusion, job-quality reform, experiential learning, and a mutual commitment to long-term workforce development. The Myth of the One-Way Pipeline Turfgrass academic programs are too often viewed as workforce development pipelines. In this paradigm, universities are expected to “turn out” graduates who are job-ready, immediately employable, and long-term loyal to the industry. These are ambitious goals that can only be achieved through industry partnerships. Universities cannot solve structural labor shortages in isolation. For starters, the looming demographic cliff, where student enrollment drops due to fewer babies having been born ~18 years ago, is self-evident. We have to reframe the relationship as a two-way street: industry leaders and employers must engage as co-investors in the success of the next generation. The declining number of turfgrass students is not solely a turf problem—it mirrors trends across many science, technology, engineering, agriculture, and mathematics (STEAM) disciplines. Yet in turf, the impact is more acute. Fewer students are entering, and those who do are frequently drawn away by careers with higher salaries, greater mobility, and more stable work-life balance—fields like wildlife biology, ecology, food science, and agricultural engineering. If return on investment (ROI) for college interests you, I highly recommend Preston Cooper’s Is College Worth It? A Comprehensive Return on Investment Analysis article. If the green industry wants to retain talented, committed professionals, it must work with academic programs to create clearer, more appealing, and more stable career pathways for students entering the field. Recruitment: A Shared Responsibility One of the most common critiques from green industry professionals and hiring managers is that turf programs are not doing enough to recruit students into the field. In truth, recruitment cannot be the sole responsibility of faculty or universities. Few high school students grow up dreaming of becoming a golf course superintendent, especially if they’ve never been exposed to the role or the science behind it. Lots of kids grow up mowing lawns, but do they view that as a stable profession? How many golf course superintendents leave the industry for better working hours or more stable family lives? The stories of our profession are not always positive. How do we improve that? Meaningful recruitment requires visibility, storytelling, and early engagement. That means: Hosting and organizing Golf Course Superintendents Association of America’s (GCSAA’s) STEAM program, First Green. Industry professionals visiting high schools, FFA programs, and 4-H events to talk about careers in turf and to give hands-on help managing facilities. Hosting youth days, career shadowing, or field trips in coordination with FFA, agricultural teachers, 4-H, and Extension educators. Alumni sharing their stories, not just of agronomic challenges overcome, but of career development, family stability, and lifelong learning. Academic programs can support these efforts with marketing materials, introductory coursework, event production, and advising. Industry partners can develop their own materials, and my academic colleagues and I would be happy to collaborate. But unless the industry is willing to support or do the work, recruitment will remain a leaky pipeline. The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America has promoted its First Green program and has invested heavily in promoting the profession to kids in FFA. This is a good example of how we might target youth to entice them into our profession. Reaching the Future of the Profession A second issue compounding recruitment challenges is the profession’s lack of demographic diversity (this isn’t a DEI discussion!). This is not simply a turfgrass issue; it reflects broader underrepresentation across many STEAM fields. However, the profession’s visual and cultural homogeneity isn’t always inviting to those from different socioeconomic or cultural backgrounds. That’s to say very little of the lack of female representation—it’s improving. Still, it lags considerably behind many other attractive career fields for the same candidate pool we are competing for. If we want to build a workforce that reflects the broader demographics of our society, the turfgrass industry must actively recruit from historically underrepresented communities, including women, students of color, and first-generation college students. Many turf programs sit within land-grant institutions with a mission to serve all citizens of their state. Partnerships with historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), tribal colleges, and community colleges offer promising avenues for talent development. Additionally, the industry must take steps to ensure that students from diverse backgrounds are not only recruited but also retained. That means: Paid internships with real mentorship, not just summer labor. This is something our industry does well. Though pay and working conditions could always be improved, I understand the financial realities for most businesses—margins matter, and you can’t pay a 20-year-old more than your loyal long-time employees. Scholarships and travel support to attend GCSAA and regional turfgrass conferences. GCSAA and our regional events have done a great job supporting our students. Our state and regional associations have covered almost all the costs for our students attending events like Deep South. GCSAA allows students and academic advisors to attend the Golf Show for free. They allow students to be members for free. We just have to cover flight and meal costs—sell more hats and pullovers! Storytelling campaigns that highlight successful professionals in our industry. Barry Stewart hosts MSU Turf Seminar speakers, and I’m sure he’d love to hear from those of you who can share your secrets to success and happiness. If the profession remains perceived as culturally insular or exclusionary, we will continue to miss out on a generation of bright, capable professionals who simply chose other welcoming fields. Career Quality: The Hidden Cost of Turnover Recruitment efforts alone are not enough if the jobs themselves are perceived as undesirable. One of the most pressing challenges facing the green industry is career sustainability and burnout. Even for students who graduate from turf programs and enter the profession, the early-career reality can be discouraging. Starting roles are often physically demanding, geographically isolating from home, and poorly compensated relative to the skill and responsibility required. I won’t disagree: early careers are hard in many professions, and ours has a history of heartiness and resilience that we pride ourselves on. And that’s great, but let’s face it, positions frequently involve long hours, especially in golf and sports fields, weekend shifts, and high turnover. Relocation is common, placing strain on young professionals with families or community ties. Burnout is not only likely, but it’s also all too often expected. In many cases, internships play a decisive role. While some students have transformative experiences, others emerge disillusioned. Internships are often where students determine whether they see a long-term future in the profession. Unfortunately, too man
