UC San Francisco’s Landscape & Grounds Program Manager, Morgan Vaisset-Fauvel, has received a 2022 Chancellor Award for Exceptional University Service.
The award recognizes exceptional individual service contributions to UCSF by staff members who demonstrate outstanding dedication to the betterment of the university, devoting time as well as energy to serve UCSF and the campus community.
Vaisset-Fauvel oversees the maintenance and operations of Mount Sutro, a forest that stands above the historic UCSF Parnassus Heights campus, and the implementation of the forest’s ten-year management plan. In addition, Vaisset-Fauvel and his team manage the grounds across the UCSF enterprise.
“Not many employees would sign up for a job to care for an urban forest,” said former Senior Associate Vice Chancellor of Campus Life Services, Clare Shinnerl. “Who would want to manage a space spanning 61 acres, standing atop a steep hill for everyone to see, sprawling with non-native, controversy-laden Eucalyptus trees, suffering impacts from years of prolonged drought, which also includes trails open to the public with mountain bikers dodging dog owners?”
And while the job can be difficult and thankless, Vaisset-Fauvel does it with aplomb.
“All this landscape is overseen by one human being…that’s right, Morgan Vaisset-Fauvel…the one who keeps butterflies safe during nesting season,” said Assistant Director of Facilities Services, Sean Aloise. “Morgan has supported the UCSF community over these difficult past two years in several ways that improved the health and safety for everyone at the university. He pivoted with programmatic changes, additional duties, and reduced staff, as well as implementing a long-awaited Mount Sutro Ten-Year Plan aimed at keeping the forest safe and healthy.”
The scope of Vaisset-Fauvel’s work is enormous. He helped UCSF advance and implement the complex forest management plan, which took 15 years to execute. Needless to say, the plan generated differences of opinion on how to best manage an urban forest with non-native plants.
“Ultimately, the plan received support from neighbors, regents, city officials, the fire department, various not-for-profits, police, and a long list of others,” said Assistant Vice Chancellor of Facilities Services, Jon Giacomi. “Since the plan’s approval, Morgan has been stewarding UCSF’s commitments. Stewarding means explaining and reexplaining the plan, actively making progress, documenting the completed steps, staying within budget, and taking unexpected detours to respond to storms and other emergency events impacting the forest and nearby areas.”
Interim General Services Director for Facilities Services, Billy Reynoso, has worked closely with Vaisset-Fauvel since last September. “Morgan is an amazing individual. Not only is he a public servant for our community, he places the needs of others before his own. Lastly, his work ethic exemplifies our PRIDE values to the highest degree.”
During the pandemic, Vaisset-Fauvel and his team pivoted to support the high-touch cleaning of outdoor areas, such as shuttle stops, benches, recycling, compost and garbage containers, as well as outdoor play areas for the childcare center.
“This was not asked of Morgan and his team, but he stepped up and offered to shift his priorities to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This shift demonstrated yet again his dedication to safety for UCSF,” Shinnerl said.
Since becoming the program manager for Grounds, Landscape and Pest Control in 2018, Vaisset-Fauvel has always gone above and beyond with his duties, Sanchez said. “For instance, Morgan dedicates a substantial amount of his personal time volunteering to represent UCSF on special community-based working groups, committees, city boards, and more. These include the Urban Forestry Council, Tree Landmark, and Mount Sutro Committees, where he is the subject matter expert providing guidance and strategy to each of these groups.”
Vaisset-Fauvel is an active member of the Western Chapter Internal Society of Arboriculture (ISA). Since it was formed in 1934, this chapter has been a member of ISA, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering greater appreciation of the benefits and value provided by trees. The group promotes research and education to advance the professional practice of arboriculture.
“Through his partnership with ISA and other local partners, Morgan helped place UCSF on a national level,” Sanchez said. “As a result of his environmental stewardship, UCSF was nominated and awarded by the Western Chapter of ISA in 2020 for a ‘Golden Leaf Award’. His efforts are incessant and this year, he presented the Aldea San Miguel case study at the Western Chapter International Society of Arboriculture’s Western Tree Failure Database Annual Meeting.”
Sanchez said Vaisset-Fauvel’s work ethic is unsurpassable. “His regard for the environment and the UCSF mission can only be matched by his operational elegance when working with the community.”
