Phil: Week 1

Hello reader,

My name is Phil. I am a recent graduate of Salisbury University with a biology major and chem minor. For this summer, I am interning under the University of Maryland Extension Program. I also live on a poultry farm in Somerset County.

I will be working for the Extension Offices of Wicomico and Somerset County. The mentors I am working with are Haley Sater (Wico) and Sarah Hirsh (Somerset).

Here is list of some of the things that I am looking forward to do this summer:

    

A list of some of the things I will be completing this summer. I am also representing Extension in the greater Salisbury area!

Currently, the first week has been mostly digital. I am in the process of conducting a literature review and factsheet about the production of black raspberries in the Maryland/Mid-Atlantic region. I think the existence of black raspberries is interesting because you would think that is just another name for blackberries. 

Otherwise, the mentors discussed what I will be focusing on cover crops. These are crops that are added earlier in the growing season to prime the land for the actual crops much later. It's sort of like wetting clay for molding, shampooing hair for cutting, or buttering the pan for frying eggs.

Last Wednesday, all the interns met for the first time over zoom. Here we got to introduce ourselves and speak with a few other interns. In addition, we learned about the purpose behind the workforce development program. We are being asked to use critical thinking skills, develop leadership, and learn how to work as a team.

The first guest speaker was Cayden Bro, an expert in digital literacy. During our first zoom call, Bro discussed how to communicate digitally within the workforce and colleagues. We also learned how to navigate the digital space in a safe manner.

An example of Cayden Bro's Presentation / Photo Courtesy of Cayden Bro and Extension

I think one of the bigger challenges is settling into the professional workforce. Especially completing all the training modules and working forms offered by the university. Still, I am really glad that I am entering Extension and meeting new people that make me feel like I belong.

On a side note, this first week I went to Chicago to see my uncle's graduation at Midwestern University. Chicago is also home to a booming agricultural industry. Namely wheat.

Here is one cool spot with a neat garden. It's called the Bahai Temple. There were a lot of interesting plants to see. The structure is really cool to look at. The amount of patterns and shapes makes it really complex.

Bahai Temple in Chicago along with the Meditation Garden / Photo Courtesy of Phillip Nguyen

Next week, I will be looking into doing a tabling event for extension as well as assisting the Somerset Office with inventory. It looks like this summer will be something to look forward to.