On any given day, Holly Petrillo, a UW-Stevens Point forestry professor, might be knee-deep in a Wisconsin forest helping students identify tree diseases or halfway around the world in rural Kenya, guiding them through a hands-on lesson on permaculture.
This extraordinary range and unwavering commitment to student learning earned Petrillo, a professor of forestry at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, the 2025 University Teaching Excellence Award, one of the university’s highest faculty honors.
With nearly two decades of service at UW-Stevens Point, Petrillo teaches between 600 and 900 students annually. Her classroom stretches beyond four walls; it includes tree canopies, insect labs, online platforms, and global communities.
Known for her rigorous, field-based courses, Petrillo helps forestry and natural resource majors identify not just what species they are studying, but also how to figure it out on their own. Her students examine everything from tree bark and forest pests to climate data and policy documents. Along the way, they draft press releases, deliver public presentations, and collaborate on real-world management plans.
“Dr. Petrillo is an inspirational leader,” said Alice Maas, a student who has taken several of Petrillo’s courses and has also served as her teaching assistant. “Her passion for forestry is contagious. She motivates me to do my best, and the trust she’s shown me, allowing me to help manage her lab and even teach a session, has given me the confidence to grow as a student and a future professional.”
That commitment to high-impact learning is evident well beyond the UWSP campus. In 2011, Petrillo founded the Kenya Summer Field Experience, a study abroad program that brings students into direct collaboration with rural Kenyan communities. They study Indigenous cultures, natural resources, and sustainability there, not from a textbook but through lived experience.
Another course she co-developed, Lake Superior: Climate Change and Indigenous Culture, takes students to northern Wisconsin each fall. The program combines scientific investigation with cultural insight, connecting students to Ojibwe communities and agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission to understand the real-world effects of climate change on ecosystems and treaty rights.
Petrillo’s innovation extends into the digital realm, too. In 2016, she launched a fully online version of NRES 150 to expand access for nontraditional and remote learners. The course now enrolls hundreds of students yearly and has become a model for others. Her leadership in online teaching positioned her as a resource for faculty when UWSP had to pivot quickly to virtual instruction during the pandemic.
“My passion for teaching has never wavered over the almost 20 years that I have been teaching at UWSP,” she said. “But it is invigorated as I continue to develop new opportunities to reach as many students as possible.”
Despite the large number of students in her courses, Petrillo ensures every student is seen, heard, and challenged. Her inclusive teaching style and real-world applications have shaped hundreds of careers in forestry and beyond.
“Holly is a rare gem among an already outstanding group of educators,” said Melinda Vokoun, forestry faculty colleague and discipline coordinator. “Her innovation, energy, and passion for teaching are unmatched. Holly’s ability to engage hundreds of students each semester, while still making each feel seen and supported, is truly remarkable.
Whether guiding students through the forests of Wisconsin or collaborating with communities in rural Kenya, Petrillo inspires the next generation to become thoughtful stewards of the earth, both locally and globally.