Meet your Invasive Species Specialist

April Savickas

April Savickas is the Program Specialist as part of the Barry-Calhoun-Kalamazoo Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area Strike Team. Her primary focus is on the invasive vine, Mile-A-Minute-Weed, first detected in Michigan around Albion of Calhoun County. She leads the efforts to educate the community, survey land to understand the extent of it, and treat the known infestation. This project is funded by the Michigan Invasive Species Grant Program.

April graduated in 2020 from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management with certifications in Geographic Information Systems and Technology, Human Factors in the Wildland Fire, Introduction to Wildlife Fire Behavior, and Intermediate Wildland Fire Behavior.

She was a member and president of the Student Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society in Michigan. She has experience with land management in Colorado through mowing firebreaks, trail maintenance, trail repairs, and open space clean-up. She has invasive species removal experience in Michigan and Colorado.