The Grass was Greener in Lawn Care

PRINCETON, N.J. -- Princeton University junior Chris Aguilar wanted to learn about business from the ground floor.

So this summer, the North Branch resident is up to his shorts in grass clippings and worm droppings.

That's because Aguilar, 20, is part of a student run start-up business called TerraCycle Lawns in the Princeton, N.J., area.

Aguilar calls himself a "lawn care executive."

The company sells environmentally friendly lawn care services by using worms to compost garbage and turn it into fertilizer.

Aguilar and fellow employee classmates are using the Princeton campus as a testing ground for the business venture, where they are helping restore turf in the campus courtyards. Aguilar said they tend to target families with pets and grandchildren, that are concerned about using chemical fertilizers.

"The business is going well," Aguilar said. "We have around 15 customers right now that keep the four of us pretty busy each week. Then we have the turf experiment that we're conducting on Princeton University's courtyards. That keeps us active when we run out of lawns to fertilize and cut."

The company already sells its liquid fertilizer through the Home Depot.

"Hopefully, at the end of the summer we'll be able to sign the university with a bigger package for next year and then build our clientele to over 50 homeowners," he said.

Aguilar, a political economics major, was pursuing a summer position with JP Morgan Chase, a financial services firm, when he heard of the TerraCycle opportunity.

"Learning to deal with people in general is a life skill, but then taking that to the next level and being able to successfully sell them on an idea is an invaluable skill that can only really be learned," Aguilar said.

"... That's what the business world is all about, ... selling people on your ideas."

Aguilar is a graduate of North Branch High School. His parents are Chris and Georgette Aguilar.

MCC teachers to evaluate nursing programsTwo Mott Community College nursing instructors have been chosen to work with the national nursing accrediting body.

Janet Westhoff and Candice Pickens, both with MCC's associate's degree program in nursing, were recently named program evaluators for the

National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission Inc.

Headquartered in New York City, the organization is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as the accrediting agency for all types of nursing education programs.