October Agricultural & Extension Education Student of the Month Awarded to Nicole Guise

The Agricultural & Extension Education Staff would like to congratulate the October Student of the month Nicole Guise of Spring Grove, Pennsylvania. Nicole shares, "My family has two dairy farms that total over 500 acres in York and Adams counties, Buttonwood Farms and Bentz-Hollow Farm. We do not milk cows anymore but instead focus on breeding genetically elite Holstein calves and heifers, we grow corn and soybeans, and have a custom baling and harvesting business." Outside of the family farm, Nicole has gained experiences with the York County 4-H Clubs (Dairy, Dairy Beef, and Teen Council). She was a part of the state winning 4-H Dairy Judging team and traveled to both the World Dairy Expo and NAILE to represent Pennsylvania. Her experiences in 4-H lead her to serving as a Delegate for National 4-H Congress and as a York County Dairy Princess.

 Nicole spent her time attending and studying at the Penn State York Campus before joining us at University Park. While at York, Nicole was involved in the Penn State York AgSci Club, Graham Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership Fellow, and she also won a Start-Up Challenge, similar to TV show Shark Tank, with a business plan for a customizable raised bed gardening service. Currently, Nicole is a senior graduating with a B.S. in Agricultural & Extension Education with minors in Environmental Resource Management and International Agriculture. Nicole is very involved in clubs and programs at Penn State including: Ag Advocates, Teach Ag Avengers, LEAD Society (Banquet Chair), Collegiate Farm Bureau (President), Dairy Science Club (Penn State Dairy Princess), and the Student Farm Club.

In addition to Nicole's involvement in clubs and student organizations, she is a teaching assistant for the Animal Science 201 course. Her hobbies include kayaking, baking and hiking with a unique goal in mind of going to every Pennsylvania and National Park before she dies. You can find Nicole in the Ag Administration Building in the Study Abroad Lounge as it is her favorite place on campus to hang out at. The restaurant Irvings is also her favorite place to eat in State College. As part of being an "Ag Avenger" Nicole has played a role in developing the Owl Pal Program at Penn State. "I created Owl Pals to connect AEE students regardless of their location (UP or Commonwealth Campus). From my own experience moving campuses, there were opportunities I wished I had known about/people I wish I had known were there to help me. It is my hope that Owl Pals helps Commonwealth Campus students feel more prepared to make the jump to UP, but also feel more connected to the students and faculty within the major."

Nicole has had some unique opportunities while being at Penn State including her trip to Chile. Since then, she shares her growing interest in hydroponics and that she wants to learn more in this area of agriculture as she continues her studies. As she is gearing up to start her student teaching experiences this Spring, Nicole will be student teaching at Derry Area High School with Mrs. Carly-Jean Rippole. 

WE ARE excited to see where the future takes Nicole as she embarks on her journey teaching agriculture and much more! We know she will continue to succeed in the future in all that she does. Best of luck next semester Nicole, we are rooting for you! 

To keep up with Nicole be sure to check out her social media profile on Twitter @nrguise.

Morgan Bear

CPPD Student Worker

Agricultural and Extension Education

Class of 2023

Second Year Series: Carly Rippole's (@CarlyJeanBean) Experience

Throughout our lives we find ourselves in the depths of our passion for whatever it is. In that passion we develop our minds to shape and change the future. Agricultural educators are known to have a type of passion to teach and give knowledge so that they can change the minds of our future generation. They help students find their passions and our current educator featured in the blog, Carly Rippole, is one of those educators. She is one of two educators at Derry Area High School in Westmoreland County. Carly is part of the #psuaged15 cohort, and has been teaching for two full years.

In her teaching, Carly has been most inspired by her students when they themselves find their passion. In this case their passion could be for the day or for their future career. She enjoys having students come up to her before or after class to show her something they had found or what they are excited about. "Seeing them love learning and see them get excited about different subjects or topics really helps fuel me and makes my little teacher heart so happy!" There is so much to take in during your first year of teaching, and in the second year often times teachers will change something about their strategy to become more effective. In her second year her strategy of dealing with discipline has been more consistent than her first year. "It is hard to keep track of everything your first year teaching but as you move through the year you find what you need to prioritize in your classroom. That can differ between one class and another."

Agricultural educators often have favorite or most memorable moments about their students. Carly's favorite moment was when several 8th grade students who had earned their Discovery Degree had ran for officer positions and then were placed on the team. Those students had also talked about earning their Chapter Degree. From Carly's two years of educating she has learned something very valuable. She explains, "I am not perfect and there are times when I have to sit back and think, what went wrong and how do I fix it for next time." She has had struggles throughout her two years. Some of her struggles include taking things to heart instead of letting it go, labs falling through, copier jams, and just overall bad days. Carly states, "It can be hard to shake it off and come to school the next day with a clean slate and be ready to go.  I really try to debrief on the way to and from school, that is my time to let it go!" 

One piece of advice that she can give to those who will be starting their first year of educating is that it does get easier. She simple states, "You are more comfortable with your classroom, faculty, families and curriculum. You got all the scary transition stuff out of the way. Relax a little bit and use your time and spend it on things you wanted to get to the previous year." 

We are all excited to see where your career will take you, and how you will use your passion to help students find theirs! 

Luke Kerstetter

Communications Team Member

Twitter Handle: @lmkerstetter96

2020 Agricultural Education Student Teacher