The incredible student success stories of the Penn State Agricultural & Extension Education Program! Creating Positive Agents of Change to make the world a better place!
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Miss Jessica Barnhart of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania and Penn State 2020 Graduate has recently accepted a teaching position at Northern Lebanon High School in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. Jess gained her interest in agriculture when she took an Introduction to Agriculture class because she thought it would be fitting to her background. Miss. Barnhart states "I lived on a small farm and I later found a passion in wildlife that brought me to being an educational intern with DCNR located at Yellow Creek State Park. I loved teaching so much that I decided I wanted to pursue it in Agriculture, but I still wasn't sure how." She also shares that her student teaching experience at Brockway Area High School, with Kyle Norman and Matt Holt, helped to solidify that she wanted to become an Agriculture Educator.
While
student teaching, Miss. Barnhart gained experiences teaching freshman through seniors
including Wildlife, Horticulture, Animal Science, Small Gas Engines and Wood
Working. During this time is when she also learned a valuable lesson through
her classroom experiences. She said "I
learned through student teaching that every student comes with their own
backstory, their own challenges and their own strengths. Use those strengths
and their passions to make them excited to learn." She is very fond of her time
spent at Brockway and is happy to have had them be her mentors.
Currently, Miss. Barnhart has started her first year teaching agriculture
and being an FFA Advisor at Northern Lebanon High School. This is a
two-teacher program with Mrs. Jennifer Balmer. Jess teaches Elements of
Agriculture to 9thgrade
students, Introduction to Agriculture to 7th grade
students and Floriculture, Small Animal Science, and
Aquaculture/Wildlife/Forestry. Being passionate about Wildlife, she is excited to have many classroom pets/animals which
the school encourages
the students to be hands-on with. Currently they have 2 ball pythons, a tarantula, aquarium, a cane toad,
hissing cockroaches, a bearded dragon, leopard gecko, mice and rats. They are
always expanding and hoping to bring in more soon!
A word of advice Miss. Barnhart wanted to share with other students is "What's meant to be will always find a way". "So don’t sweat the small stuff. You are going to go through many challenges but you are here for a reason. Take your passions and hold them tight throughout the ride because when you see your first classroom of eyes looking at you and your thinking “how could I possibly do this” you can. And you’re going to rock every second of it!"
We are so excited for your new position and are wishing you the best of luck this year and many more ahead! Congratulations again Miss. Barnhart, on being hired to teach at Northern Lebanon High School, you will accomplish many great things with your students.
We would like to congratulate Ms. Kaitlin Liszka for being hired at Midd-West High School in Snyder County, Pennsylvania. She recently began her year teaching at the two-teacher program this August. Kaitlin student taught at Bermudian Springs High School with Mrs. Diana Jarema. During her time student teaching Kaitlin gained experiences through teaching Agriculture Mechanics 1 and 2, Environmental Awareness and Animal Science.
Kaitlin is from Jamestown, Pennsylvania where she attended Jamestown Area Jr/Sr High School. She shares that her experiences in her youth greatly impacted her choice of studying Agriculture as a career. "I grew up on a small hobby farm where we raised beef cattle and hogs. I also participated in 4-H raising market steers, hogs, and lambs." During her time at Penn State, Kaitlin was involved in the LEAD Society and was a Global Teach Ag! Intern which lead her to studying abroad in Malaysia as part of the #AgEd2Malayasia Fulbright Hayes experience.
While starting a teaching career at Midd-West High School, Kaitlin shares how excited she is to begin her first year."I am most excited to get to meet the students and become a part of the local community." She is getting her hand at teaching classes including Wildlife Science, Veterinary Science, Crop and Soil Science, Poultry Science, Landscape Design, and Agriculture Business. In the future Kaitlin is looking forward to teaching Large Animal Science, Equine Science, and Plant and Greenhouse Science.
One piece of advice she wanted to give future Agricultural & Extension Education majors is "my advice would be to do it all, don't turn down an opportunity just because you are scared or because it will stretch you, BUT make sure that you are making time for yourself and to refuel a priority. It doesn't get any easier to do the further along in the process you get, so the earlier you start to make that habit, the easier it will be to continue later on. Being refueled is so important for you to be able to continue making a difference. You can't pour from an empty pot."
Kaitlin has prepared herself for an outstanding career ahead of her. WE ARE looking forward to following Kaitlin on her journey and wishing the best for her throughout teaching career! Midd-West High School is lucky to have you, good luck this year Kaitlin! Keep up with Kaitlin by following her on Twitter @KaitlinLiszka.
The Center for Professional Personnel Development congratulates Mr. Brandon Witmer for his most recent professional achievements. Brandon has been formally hired at Otto-Eldred Jr./Sr. High School as an Agricultural Educator. To learn more about this achievement and school, we asked Brandon a few questions.
Brandon grew up in State College, Pennsylvania, but will be making the move to McKean County in Northern Pennsylvania to begin his new position. Brandon began his time as a Penn State student at Penn State DuBois where he participated in the Wildlife Society and earned a background in Wildlife and Forestry. During Brandon's time as an Agricultural and Extension Education major at Penn State University Park, he was an active member of LEAD Society and an ambitious student. As a senior in the program, he interned with Ms. Laura Metrick at Conneaut Area Senior High School where he taught Ag Mechanics, Ag 1-4, and Ag Science. More specifically, Brandon was able to teach units that focused on Soil Science, Woodshop, Public Speaking, ARC Welding, Pesticides, Food Science, Small Gas Engines, Greenhouse Management, Wildlife, and Forestry. While his time at CASH was made more challenging during the national pandemic, Brandon sees the experience as a unique opportunity to learn and grow as an educator.
After having gained experience through his student teaching internship, Brandon is excited to begin his journey at Otto-Eldred Jr./Sr. High School. Since this is a brand new program, Brandon will be the sole Agricultural Educator with the help of a second teacher who will be teaching two General Agricultural Science courses. The creation of an agricultural program at Otto-Eldred stemmed from student and community interest in agriculture after the retirement of an Industrial Arts Educator. Otto-Eldred has a shop where Brandon sees potential for Welding, Woodshop, and Small Gas Engines instruction. Brandon will be teaching a total of six classes which include seventh and eighth grade Introduction to Agriculture/STEM, Wildlife/Forestry/Natural Resources, Ag Mechanics, Ag Engineering/Technologies, and a course Brandon believes will focus on Horticulture and Landscape Design. Being that Otto-Eldred is a new program brought about by community interest and support, Brandon is excited to see it grow to be strong and centered around the community. Additionally, due to the location of the program in McKean County, he believes the program will be strong in Natural Resources, surrounded by plenty of outdoor learning opportunities such as the Allegheny National Forest. "I know for a fact that we are all going to do amazing things and I cannot wait to be a part of it".
When asked about any advice he might have for future and current Agricultural and Extension Education majors, Brandon is sure to emphasize that choosing Ag Ed was the best decision he has ever made. "There are a lot of fears going into any major but with Ag Ed, there are fears of student teaching, lesson planning, just teaching in general, and so much more. I promise if you do it right, you will be successful. What’s the right way? Don’t go through this alone. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Lean on your cohort members, teachers, faculty, and even alumni. We’ve all been there, done that. There is no reason for you to go through this journey alone. The more help you ask for and the more support you have, the greater of an impact you will have on your future students. We are all here to help and support you! Just ask!"
Congratulations to Mr. Brandon Witmer on his new position at Otto-Eldred. We look forward to seeing your impact on this program, your students, and the agriculture industry.
January 2020
Student of the Month: Mary Wurzbach (@WurzbachMary)
Every month a
student is recognized within the Agricultural and Extension Education program.
A student is chosen who has demonstrated hard work and dedication to their
education, major, and passions. The Penn State Agricultural and Extension
Education Student of January was chosen to be Mary Wurzbach of Brogue,
Pennsylvania.
Mary came to us from Millersville
University and has continued to earn many accomplishments. She was involved in the
Mid-Atlantic and American Highland Cattle Associations through Junior
Associations and livestock shows across the Mid-Atlantic. Mary carried her interest
and experiences from cattle to us at Penn State, and now as she begins her
student teaching at Oley Valley High School in Oley, Pennsylvania.
Marys’s favorite place to hang out on
campus is the Creamery patio, and her favorite sports team is Penn State
Football. Her overall favorite Penn State course is Animal Science 201. Another
one of her favorites is the restaurant “Sauly Boy’s”.
Following Spring 2020, Mary finishes
up her student teaching experiences, and will be earning her degree in
Agricultural and Extension Education. After graduation, she is most looking forward
to working with farmers and educating others in the agricultural industry. Her
favorite quote is, “When you have confidence, you can have a lot of fun. And
when you have fun, you can do amazing things”, by Joe Namath. Mary continues to
live by this quote as she gains new experiences teaching Agricultural Education
with students at Oley Valley High School. We are so excited for what the future
holds for Mary! Congratulations again on being Penn State’s Agricultural and Extension Education
student of January!
The NAAE Agriscience Inquiry Institute (Ag I²) is a state focused professional development opportunity for Agricultural Educators to learn about inquiry-based teaching and techniques to better incorporate science into their Agricultural Education courses. This opportunity also allows for sharing of materials between educators and a chance to train future educators who will be influencing future generations of leaders in agriculture. This year, a group of Pennsylvania Agricultural Educators and the 2020 Penn State Agricultural and Extension Education cohort participated in Ag I² to learn about how to improve their teaching methods in the classroom through inquiry based instruction.
THE FACILITATORS
PA Ag I² facilitators in action.
"I have really enjoyed facilitating workshops and sharing ideas with the best educators from across the country" says Ms. Krista Pontius. Two dedicated Pennsylvania Agricultural Educators and members of the National Agriscience Ambassador Academy, Ms. Krista Pontius and Ms. SaraBeth Fulton, served as facilitators for this experience. While they both expected to share inquiry based education methods with hands-on applications that could be used in the classroom with a group of fellow Agricultural Educators, one of their favorite aspects of the experience was watching each participant realize how frustrating it can be to incorporate the five elements of inquiry into their lessons, but pushing forward to make their methods more student-centered and challenging. Each hoped that the participants were able to gain a valuable understanding of inquiry based instruction from the experience. Ms. Krista Pontius emphasized, "Inquiry is about changing the classroom from teacher centered to student centered... challenging student curiosity while improving their communication skills and increasing their confidence to share their own ideas".
THE PARTICIPANTS
PA Agricultural Educators at Ag I².
Ms. Darla Romberger shared, "Whenever a group of Ag Teachers get the chance to brainstorm and share ideas regarding content and pedagogy, it is time well spent". Ag I² allowed for growth in the minds of both experienced and first-year teachers, a trait that Ms. Victoria Brown truly appreciated about the workshops. "During my time at Penn State, I had the chance to engage in multiple professional development events centered around inquiry based learning. I knew that at Ag I² we would be working through some of the same content, but I was hoping to gain a new perspective since all of my other experiences with inquiry were pre-service." Both Ms. Darla Romberger and Ms. Victoria Brown were excited to learn new activities and gain new materials that they could add to use in their existing coursework. Apart from learning about the five essential components of inquiry (Questioning, Evidence, Explanation, Connection, and Communication), Ms. Darla Romberger stated that, "the collaboration between teachers was the most valuable and memorable portion of this workshop!"
THE SENIOR COHORT
Luke Kerstetter trying out new inquiry-based techniques at Ag I².
While this years seniors in Agricultural and Extension Education at Penn State had just taken part in professional development at the National FFA Convention and Expo, Ag I² was made a special experience none-the-less. With their student teaching internships just around the corner, #psuaged20 dived deep into the inquiry-based techniques that would enable them to have a greater impact on their students at their cooperating centers. Luke Kerstetter says, "Getting the experience of teaching an inquiry-based lesson helped me understand the method and grasp how to reign in a class to conclude the 'why' to the lesson. As educators we can never forget to explain the 'why' behind the content being taught." This professional development experience, paired with the others they have attended, have prepared this years seniors for life in their own classrooms in the future. "The ideas that became more concrete in my mind will help me in my future to be able to create a more structured system of expectations in my classroom, but one that still gives the students freedom", says Kaitlin Liszka. Each senior appreciated how Ag I² taught them how to center their classrooms around their students, giving them tools to maximize their students' potential for learning.
Every month a student is recognized within the Agricultural and Extension Education program. A student is chosen who has demonstrated hard work and dedication to their education, major, and passions. Penn State Agricultural and Extension Education Student of December was chosen to be Amanda Gagne of Bristol, Connecticut which is also home of the famous ESPN.
Amanda came to us all the way from Connecticut where she was involved in FFA. She hails from Southington FFA Chapter where Amanda served as the chapter Parliamentarian and Vice-President. Then she went on to serve a year as the Connecticut State FFA Vice-President. Her fondest accomplishment was placing 9th at The National FFA Convention and Expo, in horse evaluation.
Amanda’s favorite place to hang out on campus is the HUB, and her favorite sports team is Penn State Football. Her overall favorite class is Horticulture 201, which is tree climbing! Another one of her favorites is the restaurant Roots. One interesting fact about Amanda is that as a child she was in a reality TV show and in Pepsi commercials.
With plans of graduating this Spring of 2020, Amanda will be earning her degree in Agricultural and Extension Education. After graduation, she is most looking forward to “being able to spend time with my stepdaughter as she enters FFA and Agriculture Education at our local program.” Her favorite quote that she goes by is “Everyday might not be a great day, but there is something great in everyday”. We are beyond proud of Amanda’s accomplishments and we can’t wait to see where she goes in the future. Congratulations Amanda, on being Penn State’s Agricultural and Extension Education student of December!
Every month a student is recognized within the Agricultural and Extension Education program. A student is chosen who has demonstrated hard work and dedication to their education, major, and passions. Penn State Agricultural and Extension Education Student of November was chosen to be Brandon Witmer, of State College, Pennsylvania.
Brandon is a senior here at Penn State planning to graduate spring of 2020. When he graduates, Brandon will have an Associate of Science in Wildlife Technology, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Extension Education and, a minor in Forestry. Brandon transferred from the DuBois Campus and has enjoyed his time here at University Park, with his favorite sports team being Penn State Football! In fact, his favorite place to hang out on campus is in Ferguson Room 115. Brandon’s favorite Penn State class is FOR 204 (Dendrology) with Dr. Steiner. Another one of Brandon’s favorites is The Waffle Shop in State College.
Interestingly, Brandon did not participate in 4-H or FFA in high school, but that did not hold him back, what fascinated Brandon to join Agriculture Education was the connection he could make with his passion for Environmental Education. After graduating Brandon plans to continue his education into a master’s program where he said, “I want to look at how we as agricultural educators can bring environmental education into the classroom.”
This speaks loudly and we are looking forward to what Brandon will continue to accomplish in the future. Best of luck in student teaching next semester Brandon! Check out more with Brandon by following his Instagram and Twitter handle @BWitmer20.
When I first sat down to write this post, I wanted the direction
to be centered around why educators should take students to the World Food
Prize to participate in the Global Youth Institute. Starting with explaining
what The World Food Prize (WFP) and the Global Youth Institute (GYI) are and
then move into some of my experiences that might motivate educators to want to
take students or inspire students that might read this to want to attend
themselves because that fits the audience of these blogs. As I began to write
and really reflect upon my experience though, I've realized that's not the
story that I want to be known, that's not where my deepest learning lies.
I will still start with a
little bit of background on what the World Food Prize is, so that there is some
understanding about the event I am referencing.
What is the World Food
Prize?
The World Food Prize (WFP) is the result of the vision of Dr. Norman
E. Borlaug, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970. The prize is an
international honor that recognizing those who have made contribution to
advancing human development through improving the world’s food supply.
The Global Youth Institute (GYI) was created in 1994 to give
students a voice in creating change. 200 high school students meet and discuss
issues related to food security and agriculture internationally.
I was beyond excited to be able
to attend the World Food Prize in general and was even more excited to be there
as part of the Global Teach Ag! Team - to learn more about Global Guides, work with
the professors, etc. I honestly had not put a lot of thought into what I
expected to get out of the experience beyond some networking opportunities, I
just knew that I would get to be surrounded by people that I aspired to be
like. People that were working towards creating global food security and loved
working with youth.
The #WFPGlobalGuides Team
We talked about ‘Our Why’ a lot
during the global guides program, especially in relation to digital storytelling,
but also overarching as to why we were even at the WFP. I specifically remember
the night we had our GlobalGuides Session in the mural room at the Hall of
Laurates. I was sitting with a group of teachers and we were supposed to be
telling each other about our whys. One of the teachers honed right in on me and
wanted to know what my why was and honestly, I didn’t have a meaningful answer.
After some prodding I came up with some words, but even as they left my mouth,
they felt scripted and clique.
The beginning of the #WFPGlobalGuides session in the mural room.
Throughout the week I slowly realized that as I’ve been wrapped up
in all the busyness of my own life, trying to get to the next phase, I had
somehow forgot about the part of me that has a passion for being a part of international
work related to food security and safe drinking water. I have always had a
desire and felt called to work to alleviate hunger, specifically in Africa. Those
feelings have changed slightly throughout my life for particular reasons, but
that is always where I have re-landed. That night in the mural room particularly
left me in a lot of deep thought remembering these things and thinking about life
reevaluation.
A different night we had a VIP guest from Corteva, who started out
in Agricultural Education come talk at a GlobalGuides session. As I was in this
spot of contemplating what my ‘Why’ is and since I graduate in May with not really
a clue of where I want to end up, some things that she said really resonated
with me. She talked about how we don’t have career paths, but instead we
have career adventures.
The speaker from Corteva.
My education path has already really been an adventure, and
attending WFP was a piece in that story. I think that throughout the next few
years as I start my post-graduation career adventure, I will really get to look
back at my week spent learning from everyone around me at the WPF and see that
it played a pivotal role in where I end up. Not necessarily because of all the
information that I took in, but because of the people I met and the fact that in
its own way, it made me slow down. It’s crazy to think that through the whirlwind
of chaos that taking another week away from classes caused in my life, that I could
have slowed down, but during that bubble of time WFP, actually forced me to slow
down and ask myself what I am truly
passionate about and how I can make those passions and my career collide.
Looking past what everyone around me is doing and
where they expect me to end up.
I left the World Food Prize
even more confused as to what my own future holds, but I also left encouraged
and filled with hope for our future because of the amazing, motivated, and
caring people that I was blessed to spend my week surrounded by, and with the
reignited belief in the power of education. Most importantly though, I left that
week with a deeper understanding of my own ‘Why’.
It is a custom every month to recognize one of our outstanding students within the Agricultural and Extension Education program, who has made a positive impact on their mentors, peers, and program as Student of the Month. This September, Ms. Jessica Barnhart's passion and drive has played a role in her selection as September Student of the Month.
Jess resides in Blairsville, Pennsylvania and began her journey in Agricultural Education at Derry Area High School where her Ag Teachers "planted the seed" for her to pursue Agricultural Education as a career. She spent the first two years of her college career at Penn State Altoona studying Plant Science before a position as an Education Intern at the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources spurred her excitement for educating youth, leading her to find a home in the AEE program. At Penn State Altoona, Jess was involved in CFFA and was President of Ag Club. Currently at the University Park campus, she is involved in LEAD Society is a TeachAg! Avenger.
As a senior in the program, Jess will graduate with a Bachelors Degree in May of 2020 after completing her student teaching semester at Brockway Area. Her motivation to become an Agricultural Educator is student excitement. Jess says, "I feed off of their energy". When working with students, she helps them to express energy by sparking an interest and excitement for learning inside of them. In the future, Jess plans to put this motivation to use by becoming either an Agricultural Educator or an Environmental Education Specialist. She reasons, "I would be happy in each of these career fields as long as I get to teach about my passions".
Some more about Jess includes:
Birthday: August 31st Favorite PSU Class: Biology 220W where she particularly enjoyed a stream study on macroinvertebrates. Favorite Insect: The dobsonfly. Favorite Hangout on Campus: The Entomology (5th) Floor of the ASI Building. Favorite Place to Eat in State College: McDonalds. "McNuggets are always my #1!" Favorite Quote: "What's meant to be will always find a way". 4H/FFA Background: Jess was actively involved in the Derry FFA Chapter, serving as President and Reporter, and received her American Degree last October.
Congratulations to Jessica Barnhart for being selected as September Student of the Month! Her joyful and passionate personality are an incredible addition to the Agricultural and Extension Education program at Penn State University.
Over September 13th -15th I traveled with Penn State Teach Ag! to cross more states off my list, Connecticut and Massachusetts. Penn State doesn't take you to states just to cross them off your list though (or I would totally have all 50 covered by now!), we were there to help with FFA Career and Leadership development events (CDEs and LDEs).
This was super beneficial for me because it was the first time that I got to be a part of a CDE or LDE competition the day of the event. Over the summer, I got to help with the background work of the Food Science CDE, but unfortunately I was unable to attend the actual competition. In PA, the ag teachers run the events at the State Level, so having an understanding of what goes into the event is important because I might someday be in charge of one. Regardless if I am in charge of one, I will have students competing, and to be able to coach them well, I first need to understand the event.
Let's take a step back though, What is the Big E and What are CDE/LDEs?
The Big E
The Big E is the Eastern States Exposition and is essentially a large fair that lasts for three weeks, with exhibitors and events rotating which weeks they are held. One cool part of the Big E is that each New England State has their own building to showcase special things from that state. I think one of my favorite parts was the iconic Big E Cream Puff though! It was huge and delicious!
The Connecticut Building (Picture from Amanda Gagne)
Career and Leadership Development Events are focused on specific content areas and are designed to develop "college and career readiness skills". (Find out more about them on the National FFA Website) At the Big E, teams from states in the NorthEastern Region of FFA competed.
So what did I learn?
I learned so much while I was at the Big E! The first event that I helped with was the Vet Science CDE. My specific role was to be a judge for a practicum. Students had to tell me verbally and show me how to properly restrain a rabbit. From this I learned how hard it can sometimes be to really be consistent in my grading for all the members, especially once it was getting to the end of the event and I had heard what should have been the same thing multiple times. I also learned from a coaching stand point how important it is to know the events because I had some teams that all told me very well, and the same way how to restrain the rabbit, unfortunately it did not match the rubric, so I could not give them a good score. Coach knowledge of the event can help avoid these little things that keep students from doing as well in the events as they may have hoped. I also got to grade essays for the Current Issue topic based off of a rubric for this event. I felt more qualified to be able to do this compared to being a practicum judge.
The second Vet Science Practicum judged (and picture from) Amanda Gange.
The second event I got to help with was the Food Science CDE. I was really excited to help with this one since I had missed being a part of it in June. My background knowledge of what goes into the event before the day of was helpful for me to understand how all the pieces went together, but I was unaware of how much really went into the set up of this event! My main job at this event was to judge the students group work abilities as they figured out safety hazards in food processing plants. Here I also saw the value in previous coaching of how the different segments of the events worked. Some teams were confused on what they were supposed to do in the event and those teams were the ones that also seemed to struggle the most with completing the task.
The judges for the Food Science Team Event. Mary, Erin, and Amanda (Picture from Amanda Gagne)
From both days I really learned how rubrics are beneficial for keeping everything fair across all students because it gives you a guideline that you cannot be as subjective about. It also allows for multiple people to fairly grade the same thing so that work can be done faster. I also learned the importance of well thought through setup, especially thinking through how things are set up so that students don't even have the opportunity to be tempted to cheat or "cheat on accident" because the opportunity was there. I think that both of these lesson translate back into the classroom well too, thinking about assessment design and creation.
Rubric from an LDE (Picture from Luke Kerstetter)
There were many learning moments, some time for fun, and not a whole lot of sleep on this trip, but at the end of the day it was a very beneficial trip.
We even got the bonus lesson of handling when your students leave possessions at places while you are traveling. I don't think that the #PSUAgEd20 cohort will let me soon forget leaving my phone at the Dunkin Donuts on the way home.
All the Penn State students that helped with the events after the awards banquet.
Every month we recognize a student within the Agricultural and Extension Education program who has gone above and beyond as our Student of the Month. Junior, Kaitlin Liska has been selected as the April Student of the Month! Let’s dive into why we have chosen Kaitlin to be the Student of the Month! Kaitlin proudly comes to us at Penn State from Jamestown, Pennsylvania. Kaitlin is a member of the #PSUAgEd20 cohort with a unique start to her college education. Kaitlin was inspired to pursue Agriculture Education while attending the Ohio State University studying animal science. When asked about her inspiration she responds, “I spent a lot of time helping my friends and classmates understand what was being taught in class. I also would get to bring the knowledge I was learning back home and get to share it with others. It was in these moments that I realized that I really enjoyed informing and teaching others about the agricultural industry, even more than I did working directly in industry. My friends also began to recognize this and pushed me to pursue agricultural education instead of animal science, so when I transferred into Penn State it was an easy decision to change my major.” We are truly glad to have Kaitlin here supporting her fellow classmates. Outside of the classroom, Kaitlin serves in the United States Army, is an active member of the Leadership, Education, and Agricultural Development (LEAD) Society, and a Global Teach Ag! Intern. If you want to learn more about Katlin, you can follow her on her Twitter @KaitlinLiszka or Instagram @KaitlinLiszka. Congratulations again Kaitlin, keep rocking it out! A peek of Kaitlin: Hometown: Jamestown, PA Graduation: May 2020 Birthday: Dec 8, 1995 Favorite PSU Class: AEE 349 Favorite Sports Team: Pittsburgh Steelers Favorite Hang-Out on Campus: Ferguson 213 Favorite Place to Eat in State College: State Burger (Bellefonte) 4-H/FFA Background: 4H - Market animals Favorite Quote: "People may not remember exactly what you did, or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel." ~Maya Angelou
"Welcome to New York, It's been waiting for you..." - Taylor Swift. One of the many jams we listened to on the way to New York to visit an outstanding high school and elect New York FFA's National FFA Officer Candidate.
Terra Ingram and Beth Mathie had taken six students in the Agricultural and Extension Education major to New York. Our first stop on Friday in the Empire State was at Tully Junior-Senior High School in Tully, NY. At the school, we were greeted by Mrs. Leann Jordan, the current Agriculture Teacher at the high school, and Mr. Terry Hughes, an extension support specialist at Cornell University. She had shown us around the program and talked with us about stepping into a program that has had a legacy. Mr. Hughes explained the process of becoming certified to teach in New York since it is different than Pennsylvania.
Our second stop was in Syracuse, NY at the New York State Fair Grounds. On Friday evening we had orientation/training on the process of selecting New York's NOC. Once we had finished up our training, Mr. Hughes treated us to a fantastic dinner at Dinosaurs Bar-B-Que. Absolutely wonderful food, check it out if you are ever in New York!
Saturday was the big day! We held interviews with candidates for the majority of the day. Throughout the time we spent interviewing and deliberating, we all had ah-ha moments of what it is like running for a National FFA Officer position. "I ran for PA NOC in 2016, and I now realize why I would not have made a great candidate that year," Luke expressed. We all had learned a lot through this process and opened up our eyes to what we might experience as we train future state officers/national officer candidates.
The group of students that went was Jess Barnhart, Luke Kerstetter, Megan Royer, Elise Laudenslager, Jill Palmer, and Adalyn Reed. We all enjoyed our time in New York, and had lots of fun with the dynamic duo Terra and Beth!
