Ag with EmAn Opportunity to Grow
Spending my summer with the Cook County Farm Bureau as an Ag Literacy Intern can only be described as wonderful. Working with an organization whose vision is to help people recognize and value the importance of agriculture has been so rewarding. Every day I felt that I was contributing to a cause that is so important to me.
Some of my favorite responsibilities included writing my monthly column to share information about agriculture in a fun way and creating videos to post on Facebook and the website. This experience allowed me to teach agriculture to families at local libraries both virtually and in person. I also got to explore community gardens in Chicago during my time as an intern. I was able to experience agriculture in a region beyond my own, giving me a new perspective. While at home, I am accustomed to seeing rows of corn following me down every road, but here I was impressed to see beautiful urban gardens throughout the community. While agriculture is important to all of us, I have learned that we all experience and relate to it in many ways.
I am excited to head back to Illinois State University for the year and finish my degree. Having a degree in Agribusiness is the best of both worlds. I can learn lots of new and important business skills while also diving deeper into a topic I already knew I loved. Though I come from a family farm, many of my classmates do not have an agricultural background. You do not have to be a farmer to study agriculture! If you look at the numbers, there are more jobs open than there are students graduating each year with degrees in agriculture, renewable natural resources, and environmental sciences. This means there is an overabundance of opportunities waiting for recent graduates in these fields!
Studying agriculture is exciting and offers many different routes you could go! If you are interested in business like me, then Agribusiness or Animal Industry Management could be great options for you! Otherwise, if you are someone who likes to be creative, you could explore opportunities in Agriculture Education or Agricultural Communications. There are also possibilities to focus on science in Crop and Soil Science, Agronomy, or Pre-Vet!
Completing your degree is only part of a successful college experience. Getting involved and having internships play an important part in finding your passion through real-life experiences. I am so thankful I was able to have this opportunity to grow throughout my internship with the Cook County Farm Bureau!