Nicole Guise's Journey to Agricultural Education

"You better have snow tires". Every time this Agricultural and Extension Education senior at Penn State talks about her Student Teaching Placement, warnings of a Westmoreland County winter always enter the conversation. However, as a soon to be Student Teacher in the midst of a global pandemic, Nicole Guise has learned a thing or two about weathering a storm. 

Born and raised in York County, Nicole was able to engage in agriculture on her family farm, through York County 4-H, and the Future Farmer Club at her high school. As a 4-Her, she was involved in Dairy Club, Dairy Beef Club, and Teen Council. She also enjoyed being a camp counselor, competing at the national level for Dairy Judging twice, and being a Dairy Princess. It was through her 4-H extension agent Linda Spahr that Nicole became inspired to pursue a career in Agricultural Education. "I always admired how she made learning fun... I never even comprehended how much I learned in 4-H until after I aged out, because when I was at a 4-H meeting with Linda it was just fun!" Additionally, Carol Richwine from Northern York High School encouraged Nicole to attend college and pursue a degree in Agricultural and Extension Education after a day of Nicole shadowing her as a high school senior. 

After graduating, Nicole says she chose to attend Penn State because, "I really liked how the program has foundations in the sciences. So, before you even think about the methods of teaching, you have a background in animal science, plant science, and mechanics." At Penn State, Nicole had the opportunity to be a Teaching Assistant for ANSC 201 and be "the teacher" for the first time in her academic career. She was also able to engage as a Graham Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership Fellow which gave her a chance to design and implement a business plan and found a gardening service. 

However, in preparing for life at Penn State, Nicole did not expect her college experience to include COVID-19. While she has developed an appetite for spaghetti squash, enjoyed walks with her family, and took part in bargain hunting at local auctions, her unique pre-service Student Teaching experience has proved to be challenging. "It has been hard to stay motivated, but I have also had to get really creative about how I complete assignments. I decided to not go back to campus, and I have been online all semester which has been challenging for my hands-on classes like AEE 350. However, my professors have been great, and I appreciate that they work with me. Most recently, in AEE 350 my classmates built dog houses and I did a smaller version out of cardboard and was still able to learn all the same concepts." 

While quarantine has her dreaming of the days when she can travel to Puerto Rico or Nova Scotia, Nicole feels that this unique situation has given her a chance to spend more time with her family and focus on her academics. Having more time to prepare for Student Teaching, she explains that the usual AEE senior time crunch is made even more challenging by travelling to conferences and conventions, not to mention the occasional Dunkin' distraction. The current social distancing guidelines have instead allowed Nicole to engage in various virtual opportunities such as the Future Agriscience Teacher Symposium (FAST), ACTE VISION Conference, AFA Leaders Conference, and becoming a certified Level 1 Google Educator, all experiences that are helping her gear up for her time battling the snow in western Pennsylvania.

Despite her reservations about the winter weather, Nicole will be Student Teaching with Mrs. Carly-Jean Rippole at Derry Area High School this spring. "I picked this school because I believe it is a place where I can have the most well-rounded and diverse experience possible. Also, the facilities are AMAZING and so varied". While she is nervous that she will not get to Student Teach in person, she is excited to try out all of her teaching ideas and get to know herself as an educator. "I hope to learn how to create a work life balance. I really admire how my Cooperating Teacher sets boundaries in her professional and personal life and I hope some of that will rub off on me." Nicole is also looking forward to future job prospects that may open up as she completes her Student Teaching Internship. She hopes her experiences in the spring will help her to decide what environment she would like to work in after graduation. "I have had an internship with the PA Friends of Agriculture Foundation for a few summers now and if school-based Agricultural Education isn’t for me, I think I would also really like working for a non-profit doing outreach". 

While the icy prospect of virtual instruction leaves Nicole's road toward Student Teaching a bit slippery, we know that her resilience, organization, and poise will act as her snow tires as she blossoms into an incredible Agricultural Educator. Nicole, WE ARE Penn State proud of you and thankful to have you as part of the Agricultural and Extension Education program. Be sure to keep up with Nicole's Student Teaching experience through her blog "The Hoot" at https://theh00t.blogspot.com/.

Taylor Halbleib

CPPD Student Worker

Agricultural and Extension Education

Class of 2022