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Department of Communications and Agricultural Education

Tag: Internships

Alumni Spotlight: Jennifer Hotchkiss Shike

by Rachel Waggie, agricultural education and communication master’s student

This May will mark 20 years since Jennifer Hotchkiss Shike graduated from Kansas State University’s Agricultural Journalism program – now the Agricultural Communications and Journalism program. Shike transferred to K-State for her final two years of college and was a dual-major in agricultural journalism and animal sciences and industry. During her collegiate career, she was a member of both the horse and livestock judging teams and completed three internships, which she credits as a key part of her educational experience. Shike interned

with the Washington County Extension Office in Washington, Iowa; Seedstock Edge/National Swine Registry in West Lafayette, Ind.; and the Angus Journal in St Joseph, Mo., before graduating in May 2000. She notes that internships “opened doors to opportunities for my future careers, helped me build a network in the industry, allowed me to get real-world experience and maybe most importantly, helped me realize things I did and did not want to do in a future career while having respect for the growth process.”

Before entering her current role as Farm Journal’s PORK editor, Shike served as National Swine Registry director of junior activities. She later went on to work for the University of Illinois as a news writer and then director of communications and marketing.

“Organizing the National Junior Swine Association from the ground up was an amazing opportunity that I still can’t believe I was able to do. Through that I learned so much about communication, organizational development and people – I can’t imagine my perspective at this point of my life without it. Going to work for the University of Illinois…just grew my experience base tenfold,” Shike remarks. “If I would have limited myself to immediately going to work for a livestock magazine as I had dreamed in college, I would have missed out on so much.”

Reflecting on her time at K-State, Shike fondly remembers working with faculty and staff in ag journalism. She says they were very supportive of her as a dual-major and especially appreciates Dr. Boone’s encouragement and support. “I was involved in ACT and she always made that a fun and rewarding experience. She encouraged me to get out in the industry and experience ag communications firsthand,” Shike recalls. Shike also credits her peers from K-State who motivated her to push her boundaries and sharpened her as a writer and communicator. Currently, Shike serves on the Livestock Publications Council board of directors and as a committee co-chair in AAEA – The Ag Communicators Network.

Shike and her husband, Dan, who is also a K-State alum, live near Champaign, Illinois. The Shikes have three children – Olivia, 13; Hunter, 11; and Harper, 6.

“Our kids definitely keep us on the go – we all enjoy showing pigs as a family and the kids pretty much live in the barn in the summer when they aren’t in school,” she says.

Jennifer and Dan originally met at Black Hawk College East Campus while on the livestock judging team. Both continued their judging careers at K-State, and judge at livestock shows still today. Dan judges livestock shows throughout the country and has been fortunate to judge in some amazing places outside of the U.S. like the Sydney Royal Show in Australia and most recently, the Royal Adelaide show in Australia. Jennifer recently judged showmanship at the Arizona National Livestock Show. At the community level, with all three kids involved in 4-H, the Shikes assist with the county 4-H livestock judging team.

When asked what advice she would offer to current students, Shike says, “Be open minded and push yourself to think outside of the box. The very best part of this major is the flexibility – there are so many ways to apply what you are learning and that is exciting! I know I’ve been able to get to where I am today because of that strong base I developed at K-State.”

Internship highlight – Zach Callaghan

by Zach Callaghan, agricultural education student

This summer, I worked as an Educational Program Assistant at the Sunset Zoo in Manhattan. In this role, I primarily spent my time teaching elementary and middle school students during weekly summer camps. Each week was centered around a different theme and focused on teaching the science of animals, nature, and environmental conservation. As a future high school agriculture teacher, this experience helped to build and improve my pedagogical skills by providing opportunities to write curriculum and manage my own classroom. I would definitely recommend this experienceto other Agricultural Education students as it is a great outlet to practice teaching and the curriculum can easily relate to agriculture. With only one semester left until I begin my student teaching experience, I am grateful to have had this opportunity to work with students and teach them a little bit about agriculture along the way!

 

Internship highlight: Mary Marsh

by Mary Marsh, agricultural communication and journalism student

 

For my final summer of college, I decided to go home to California and get a job close to home. This summer, I am working as a field inspector for the California Crop Improvement Association. I am checking sunflower fields in my home county of Colusa. My role is to go to the sunflower fields around the county and make reports about what I see to make sure the crop is high quality, since these flowers are going to be harvested for seed.

I do three inspections throughout the growing season. My initial check is pre-bloom when the buds are just beginning to form. I look for different weeds in the field and for different varieties of sunflowers that may have grown in the field or within a mile to two-mile radius. Although it is not in the job description, I also keep an eye out for different pests causing problems in the sunflowers. During the two bloom checks, I walk out into the field and make sure there are no off-varieties that might affect the quality of seed. Being in the field is important to me, this job is all about getting in the thick of the sunflower action. I have about 90 fields to check around my county. Needless to say, I have been busy and have learned quite a bit about sunflower production!

Although my job is heavily focused on agronomy, I have found ways to keep my communication skills polished. I have brought my camera along with me and have made it my goal to document the various maturity stages in my fields. I also get to interact with agronomists and growers occasionally. So far, I have noticed a growing confidence in talking about field crops since taking this internship.

This job has allowed me to see more of my county and learn a whole new commodity. I will be a stronger communicator because of this hands-on experience in production agriculture.

Student Spotlight: Ashley McKenny

By Deanna Reid, agricultural education and communications master’s student

Ashley McKenny, a senior majoring in agricultural communications and journalism and animal science and industry with a marketing and communication option, spent her summer interning for Legacy Livestock Imaging. Legacy Livestock Imaging is based in Topeka, Kansas, and owned by Heidi and Charles Anderson. Heidi visited the Imagery in Agriculture class at Kansas State last spring to talk about her work, and McKenny was instantly interested in the summer internship opportunity at Legacy Livestock Imaging. She chose to apply because it combined two of her favorite things: livestock, especially show cattle, and photography. McKenny traveled to the Red Angus, Shorthorn, Hereford, and Limousin Junior national shows taking photos both in and out of the show ring, posting on social media, and sorting pictures after shows.

McKenny, who is working on growing her own photography business, says, “I really enjoyed my internship this summer. It gave me some great real-world experience and really taught me a lot about photography. It also taught me that photography is something I want to do in the future.” Though much of her summer was spent in the barn, she did get to explore other places like the National Mustard Museum in Madison, Wisconsin and Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.

Horses and 4-H’ers: My Summer Experience

By Allison Wakefield, agricultural communications and journalism junior

 

When asked about my job at the Rock Springs 4-H Center, this Marc Anthony quote immediately comes to mind: “If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.” This summer, I was a member of the horse barn staff. I had been to Rock Springs as both a 4-H camper and counselor, but my experiences as a child and young adult were nothing compared to what I did this summer.

In June, more than 2,200 4-H’ers from all over Kansas visited the horse barn and got the chance learn about and ride horses. Rock Springs also hosted family reunions, company conferences, camps for hearing-impaired youth, and even a 4-H exchange group from Japan.

As an agricultural communications and journalism major, I was excited to improve my communications skills and learn how to teach and interact with a wide variety of audiences and quickly adapt to their learning abilities. I was challenged to give instructions to groups of people who didn’t speak English or could not hear me. It was extremely challenging, but also rewarding. Seeing a smile on a child’s face while riding a horse and knowing that I was part of a lifelong memory was inspiring.

My co-workers, both equine and human, were fun to work with. We endured a few long, hot days, but we stayed positive and happy. It was clear that I was working with people who loved the work as much as I did.

My favorite thing about this summer was being able to use my photography skills on the trails. I took photographs of numerous trails that other barn staff members and I had cleared for future trail riders. I am so glad I had the chance to capture friends and fun through a lens and help the 4-H center at the same time.

Helping many kids ride their first horse, watching them overcome their fears, learn about horses, and begin to love them affected me greatly. At the end of the summer, I realized that I may have left a small mark on Rock Springs, but Rock Springs left an even bigger mark on me, and I’ll never forget it.

Allison, a junior from Mound City, Kansas, is serving as the Ag Council Representative for the 2018-2019 K-State Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow (ACT) chapter.

Ag Ed Student Teacher Interns Participate in Professional Development

Story by Anissa Zagonel, master’s student

K-State agricultural education student teaching interns recently participated in two days of professional development for the Ag Ed Enhancing Pre-Service Instruction (EPIC) Experience sponsored by Kansas Corn Commission. Students were able to tour and talk with various production agricultural sectors in Garden City, Kansas.

During the tour, students:

  • visited Royal Farms Dairy and learned from Kyle Averhoff about the farm’s story, goals, and the role of corn in the dairy industry;
  • toured Bonanza Ethanol Plant, where Jeff Gilbert and colleagues spoke about the ethanol industry and their Garden City plant;
  • visited Reeve Cattle Co., where the Reeve family discussed their use of ethanol, feed distillers grains, and other corn feedstuffs in their cattle operation;
  • visited the K-State Research and Extension Southwest Research Station, where Dwane and Grace Roth, Mike Meyer, and Michael Kempke discussed water issues in southwest Kansas and emerging technologies for sustainable water use;
  • heard perspectives from individual corn producers, Russell Komlofske, Kyler Millershaski, and Jeff Mai;
  • visited Sublette High School agricultural education teacher, Will Johnson who shared advice for starting a new agricultural education program and beginning careers as educators;
  • and visited Cimarron High School agricultural education teacher Ryan Miller who spoke to students about the importance of positive community relationships to create successful agricultural education programs.

 

Thank you, alumni, for helping me along the way

Story by Maggie Seiler, senior (ACJ)

Maggie

The communications world is a small place, and it sparkles with K-Staters. I realized this when I stepped off the plane for my first assignment as a traveling communications intern for ZimmComm New Media, LLC. At the time, I had just finished my sophomore year studying agricultural communications and journalism at Kansas State University, and I was still incredibly intimidated by the world of communications. Continue reading “Thank you, alumni, for helping me along the way”

Classrooms to Careers

Story by Jordan Pieschl, senior (ACJ)

Summer break presents an opportunity for students to apply their knowledge and skills in real-world experiences. This past summer, students in the department held internships in many areas of the industry, including government, extension, production, organizations and associations.

Nathan Lauden, ACJ senior interned for Monsanto.

Nathan Laudan, a senior agricultural communications and journalism major, was one of 39 students from around the nation interning for Monsanto.
Continue reading “Classrooms to Careers”