John Paul “JP” Sanborn, professional development director for Crawford Tree & Landscape in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, had been in the industry for about 20 years when he gained TCIA’s Certified Treecare Safety Professional (CTSP) credential in 2014.

A Crawford Tree & Landscape lift operator cuts a rigged piece. “We have to convince people that there are historical, statistical reasons for accepting rules,” says JP Sanborn. All photos courtesy of JP Sanborn.

“I was starting to get to the point where just climbing wasn’t everything anymore, and there was still a lot of the cowboy stuff going on around me,” says Sanborn. “So I was becoming more focused and aware of the safety aspect.”

The CTSP credential is intended to help trainers, or “coaches,” develop and nurture a safe work environment at their companies. “Training per se is important, but mentoring even more so,” says Sanborn. “In my current role, and as a BCMA (Board Certified Master Arborist) and CTSP, I can move between job sites to observe and suggest.”

At the time, Sanborn still had a business he had operated for 15 years – Sanborn’s Services, a pruning and removal company –and was still doing contract climbing. “So I was trying to convince people that there are statistical reasons for regulations. And just like any other credential, the CTSP puts some weight behind your words. It’s not just the old guy talking, you’ve got something to back you up,” he says.

Becoming a mentor
Sanborn came to Crawford Tree & Landscape, an accredited, 47-year TCIA member company founded in 1969, in 2021, when he was looking for the next step in his career. He had served in the U.S. Marine Corps for nine years, where he deployed to 21 countries. After operating his own business all those years and being in his mid-50s (he turns 60 this April), he felt he’d aged out of climbing. But he didn’t want to be just a businessman.

“The conclusion I came to was, I am not a businessman. Those are not the aspects of the profession I want to focus on. I’m more interested in the trees and the ‘youngsters’ that are our future,” Sanborn says. “Paying bills and arranging financing is a bore.”

With that awareness, he found the right fit at Crawford Tree & Landscape.

“It’s a lot of mentoring, keeping track to make sure everyone is keeping some kind of focus on career and not just the day to day,” he says.

The climber in the foreground is Crawford Tree & Landscape’s youngest Registered Arborist Apprentice, Damian Concepcion Romero. “Training per se is important, but mentoring even more so,” says Sanborn.

JP Sanborn

Applying the training
Sanborn says he appreciates the CTSP community, where he can reach out and talk to people if he has questions about things he’s seeing. “Am I overreacting, or are other people seeing this, too? The CTSP Facebook page is really helpful. You can throw spaghetti on the wall, see if it sticks and somebody responds,” he says.

Meanwhile, he is wary of being a rulebook thumper.

“One of the few things I hate is the chest-thumping assertion that we are a dangerous profession. We have inherent risks we mitigate through education and training, building skills. There are people who call for the unquestioning adherence to regulation. The problem is, that can bring in compliance without understanding. We have to convince people that there are historical, statistical reasons for accepting rules,” Sanborn says.

That said, “This may include a stipulation that there may be times when it is safer to perform a task counter to regulation,” he says. “But overuse of proscribed (banned or discouraged) practices is an unacceptable risk exposure, so this cannot be a common occurrence.”

As for applying his CTSP training, he’s learned to train responsively. On the one hand, you check whether the crew is becoming overambitious in what they are doing. “We have a very good Tree Production Department with thoughtful young climbers; there’s not a cowboy in there.” On the other hand, sometimes people can be too conservative, and a little coaching can help them reach higher.

“It takes a while for people to trust the tree and the gear. Sometimes, focusing on safety can engender an over-cautious attitude,” he notes. “You can set your tie-in a little higher, you can go out on a limb farther and you don’t have to worry so much about it.”

Apprentice Damian Concepcion Romero, shown here, is one of three apprentices at CTL, along with Chris McKay and Paul Johannes, a journey worker as of November 2024.

Conclusion
CTSP credentialing is an outstanding path for the arborist looking for the next step in their career path, according to Sanborn. “You do not need to be a formal trainer to utilize it; a crew leader who passes TRAQ (Tree Risk Assessment Qualification) should look at it as an option,” Sanborn says. “Each credential lends credibility to what one has to say to a stranger. I’ve been doing this since the ’90s, but I’ve not been doing the exact same thing. They say I’ve studied my profession.”

For more information about the CTSP program and upcoming workshops, go to tcia.org/safety.

Tamsin Venn is founding publisher of the former Atlantic Coastal Kayaker magazine and author of the book “Sea Kayaking Along the New England Coast,” and has been a contributing writer to TCI Magazine since 2011. She lives in Ipswich, Massachusetts.