From left—Truc Bui, Nicole Bain, Katherine Knight and Jenny Hwang. Contributed
Four students from Fairfax High School graduated from the 2013 Governor’s School of Agriculture held at Virginia Tech June 30 to July 27.
Nicole Bain, Truc Bui, Jenny Hwang and Katherine Knight, all seniors in the 2013-14 year, were one of 100 rising junior and senior high school students from across the commonwealth selected to participate in the month-long summer residential program for gifted students interested in agriculture and natural resources.
The program was developed in 2001 to provide hands-on, cutting-edge, scientific and academic instruction to future leaders and scientists to promote their understanding of the scope, opportunities and challenges, through academic and scientific rigor of the broad fields of agriculture, human health, natural resources and veterinary medicine.
Students received instruction from Virginia Tech professors in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Natural Resources, and the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. In addition, agricultural education teachers from school divisions around the state joined the school’s faculty.
"The Virginia Governor’s School for Agriculture is a great way to introduce Virginia’s youth to the science of agriculture," said Curtis Friedel, GSA director and assistant professor of agriculture and extension education in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. "Many of the students attending our program don’t have an agricultural background, so it is very informative for them to see all the possible careers in agriculture available to them.”
Each student was assigned to a “major,” a class made up of about 20 students, based on his or her interests. These included animal science, plant science, food science, agricultural engineering and agricultural economics, with leadership classes integrated into each program. Students in each major completed the same specialized course designed to provide major-specific instruction and to prepare them to work on a major-specific project.
Each major was divided into work groups to undertake a group research project that culminated in a symposium and poster session on the last day of the school. Although the school curriculum was intense, students also participated in a variety of recreational activities, field trips and industry tours during the 28 days.
Students interested in participating in the Governor’s School for Agriculture for 2014 should contact their high school guidance counselor, or Dr. Curtis Friedel, director of the Governor’s School of Agriculture, at agschool@vt.edu or 540-231-6836.