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Department of Communications and Agricultural Education

Category: September

Ulmer travels to Ethiopia

Posted on by Rachel Waggie

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

Agricultural education professor Jon Ulmer traveled to Ethiopia to attend the All African Post Harvest Loss Congress and Expo in Addis Ababa. While in Ethiopia, Ulmer visited different regions and interviewed farmers for a grant project with USAID. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for the Reduction of Post-harvest Loss is a strategic, applied, research and education program aimed at improving global food security by reducing post-harvest losses in stored product crops, such as grains, oilseeds, legumes, root crops and seeds.

Ulmer to be Honored at National FFA Meeting

Posted on by Deanna Reid

By Linda Gilmore

Jon Ulmer, associate professor of agricultural education, was selected by the national FFA program to receive the Honorary American FFA Degree. This award is given to those who advance agricultural education and FFA through outstanding personal commitment. The Honorary American FFA Degree recognizes those who have gone beyond valuable daily contributions to make an extraordinary long-term difference in the lives of students, inspiring confidence in a new generation of agriculturists. Ulmer will receive the award at the 2018 National FFA Convention and Expo during an onstage ceremony on Friday, Oct. 26, in Indianapolis. All recipients will receive a certificate and medal, and their names will be permanently recorded. Ulmer currently serves on the National FFA Board of Directors.

ACE/AMS Roundup

Posted on by Deanna Reid

By Linda Gilmore

Faculty, staff, and students from the department attended the combined Association for Communication Excellence and Agricultural Media Summit (ACE/AMS) conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, August 4-8. Several department members presented sessions: Linda Gilmore, with Dr. Quisto Settle from Oklahoma State University, presented “Turn ‘Me’ Time into Productive Time.” Cassie Wandersee ’12, ’16  presented “Advanced Facebook Analytics,” “Building a Program Assessment Tool in Qualtrics,” and “Proving Your Worth Through Effective Social Media Metric Reporting.” Jason Hackett presented “Podcasting 101: A Direct Route to Your Audiences Through Audio.” Audrey King, Lauri Baker, and Anissa Zagonel, along with Kris Boone, Ohio State University, presented “What is Today’s Story? Exploring the Land-grant Mission Through Story Circles.” Jason Ellis ‘98 and Donna Sheffield also attended the conference.

 

Members of the department won a Silver Award in the ACE Critique and Awards Contest for the 2018 College of Agriculture and K-State Research and Extension Annual Report: Driving Force for Change marketing communications campaign. Those who worked on the project and are included in the award: ACE members Gloria Holcombe, Jason Hackett, Brad Beckman, Mark Stadtlander, and Amy Hartman; and non-ACE members Megan Macy, Dan Donnert, Mary Lou Peter ‘79, Jeff Wichman, Eric Atkinson, Phylicia Mau, Pat Melgares, and Randall Kowalik.

 

Donna Sheffield and Lauri Baker attended the ACE Board of Directors meeting. Donna is the Development Director and served on the conference committee as co-chair of the sponsorship committee. Lauri is the Research Director.

 

Gloria Holcombe received her 20-year certificate for ACE membership.

 

Several students also attended and participated in ACT activities. The Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow (ACT) club was awarded Chapter of the Year for the second year in a row. This is a national ACT award. ACT adviser Audrey King praised the club saying, “The girls worked so hard this past year, but I know we all had a great time while doing it. Each and every one of these women will go on to do amazing things. I am so humbled and grateful to have a tiny part in their stories.”

In addition to the club award, Jill Seiler was one of four national Past President’s Scholarship recipients and was recognized at AMS. The scholarship is funded by the AAEA Professional Improvement Foundation and in part by CoBank. Sarah Moyer was a finalist for the Forrest Bassford award through the Livestock Publications Council.

 

Students who attended AMS included: Undergrads: Janae McKinney, Mary Marsh, Leah Giess, Mikey Hughes, Sarah Moyer, and Tarra Rotstein; Graduate students: Rachel Waggie; and Spring 2018 recent graduates: Jill Seiler and Chelsie Calliham. Audrey King ‘09 and Katie Burke ’10, ‘15 represented them as advisers.

K-State Student Teachers Attend Conference

Posted on by Deanna Reid

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

 

Nineteen agricultural education student teaching interns attended the Kansas Ag Growth Summit on August 23 at the Kansas Department of Agriculture in Manhattan, Kansas. This year’s summit was the largest ever, with more than 500 people attending to talk about growing agriculture in Kansas. Participants included farmers, ranchers, agribusiness owners, policy makers, city/county representatives, and leaders of agriculture organizations. The K-State student teachers not only learned about all aspects of Kansas agriculture but were active participants in the event.

Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow and Agricultural Education club Participate in Watermelon Feed

Posted on by Deanna Reid

By Leah Giess, agricultural communications and journalism senior

 

The annual Watermelon Feed, an event hosted by the College of Agriculture to celebrate the beginning of school, is a great way for students to interact with more than 35 agriculture clubs and organizations. The Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow (ACT) and the Agricultural Education clubs use this event to meet potential new members and inform them about ACT and professional development opportunities.

At the 2018 Watermelon Feed, ACT officers handed out ice pops and magnets to more than 40 students interested in learning more about the club. This year, ACT officers have scheduled professional development meetings and communications workshops. They provide opportunities to grow as communicators and connect with industry professionals. Social gatherings allow club members to have fun and create strong friendships.

ACT also provides opportunities for K-State students to get involved with committees, including a fundraiser committee and a high school critique and contest committee, which is an educational outreach fundraiser for the club. ACT encourages high school students to submit writing/graphic designs and photography to be judged for a prize.

Leah Giess (president), Mary Marsh (vice president of development), Janae McKinney (vice president of membership), Tarra Rotstein (secretary/treasurer), Katie Harbert (public relations officer), and Allison Wakefield (agriculture student council representative) make up the 2018-2019 ACT officer team.  

(Left to Right: Mary Marsh, Katie Harbert, Allison Wakefield, Tarra Rotstein, Leah Geiss, and Janae McKinney)

Student Spotlight: Ashley McKenny

Posted on by Deanna Reid

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

Posted on by Deanna Reid

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.