Bruce Edwards ’71 B.S. Forest Science

A 1971 graduate with a bachelor's degree in Forest Science, Edwards is owner and manager of Starlight Forests LLC, a timber-growing company that owns timberlands in northeastern Pennsylvania and southeastern New York.

Edwards began Starlight Forests in 1999 and continues to gain forestland mainly for timber production and management. Since its start in 2000, the company has accumulated more than 11,000 acres of high-quality timberlands.

After earning a master's degree in forest biometrics from Colorado State University in 1973, Edwards worked for five years at Potlatch Corp. in Lewistown, Idaho, as a research biometrician. He helped adapt and implement a computerized stand-modeling program for management planning on 600,000 acres of Potlatch forest.

Edwards then spent three years as a consulting forester with Northeast Timber Service Inc. in Hancock, N.Y., before returning to Potlatch Corp. for two years as a research forester. He also held several positions with Mallery Lumber Corp. in Hancock, N.Y.

Edwards is a member of several professional organizations, including the Society of American Foresters, the Association of Consulting Foresters, the Empire State Forest Products Association and the Pennsylvania Forestry Association.

Penn State's School of Forest Resources honored Edwards as an Outstanding Alumnus in 2007. His philanthropy includes gifts to the college in support of scholarships for Forest Science students and for the construction of the Forest Resources Building.