An Internship Program to Identify and Develop Future IPM Professionals

Final Compliance Performance Report
Texas Department of Agriculture IPM Grant Program
TDA Grant No. IPM02-001
March 4, 2003
For:
Statewide Internship Project

Submitted by:
Thomas W. Fuchs
Professor and Extension IPM Coordinator
7887 U.S. Highway 87 N
Texas A&M Research and Extension Center
San Angelo, TX 76901
Phone (915)653-4576
FAX (915)655-7791
t-fuchs@tamu.edu

Collaborators:
Dr. Greta Schuster
Assistant Professor of IPM
West Texas A&M University
Box 60998
Canyon, TX 79016-0001
Phone (806) 651-2552
gschuster@mail.wtamu.edu

Dr. Scott Armstrong
Assistant Professor
Plant and Soil Sciences Department
Texas Tech University
Box 42122
Lubbock, TX 79409-2122
Phone (806)742-9786
joarmstr@ttacs.ttu.edu

Project Summary

This was the fourth year that an IPM internship project was funded by the Texas Department of Agriculture IPM grants program. In 1998, the project supported three interns, in 2000 five interns and in 2001 and 2002, nine interns.
The objectives of this project were as follows:
1) Identify top college students in crop production or crop protection disciplines interested in IPM
2) Provide field level experience in implementing IPM principles and practices
3) Teach students to evaluate biological data, document activities and accomplishments
4) Train students in designing, conducting and evaluating biological demonstrations

The first step in accomplishing the objectives was to recruit deserving students to participate in the internship program. Contact was made with student advisors and an informational package was sent to the Entomology Department, the Plant Pathology and Microbiology Department and the Soil and Crop Sciences Department at Texas A&M University and the Pest Management contacts at Texas A&M University - Commerce, Texas Tech University, West Texas A&M University, Tarelton State University and New Mexico State University. The information packet included information about the internship program, goals for the program, application forms and contact information. We also developed a colored poster announcing the program which was provided to each departmental contact and also posted on bulletin boards and near elevators in buildings where agricultural students attend classes. Announcements of the internship program were made by professors in several agricultural classes at the various academic institutions and potential student intern candidates were e-mailed information from at least one department.

All Extension Agents-IPM were contacted to determine which IPM units wished to host an intern and asked to Extension Agents-IPM to help recruit deserving students. Fifteen Extension Agents-IPM indicated that their units were interested in hiring an IPM intern.

Sixteen potential interns completed applications and were interviewed. Nine interns representing 4 universities and 6 academic departments were selected to participate in the program. Geographic locations for each intern was determined based upon the location of IPM units who wished to host interns, preferences of interns and successful negotiations with the IPM unit. The length of the internship varied from 12-16 weeks depending upon preferences of both the intern and the host location.

Interns were required to submit monthly reports describing progress toward meeting the 10 experiential learning goals outlined for the internship and their final report. I made site visits to the location of each internship to evaluate the intern’s progress, discuss future career plans and to solicit their input as to how the internship experience can be improved in future years. I was very favorably impressed with each intern, their eagerness to learn and their work ethic. Each indicated that the internship experience is much more valuable than they imagined and that they learned an incredible amount in the relatively short period of time. Each intern provided a written formal evaluation of the internship program at the end of their internship training.

Progress toward performance objectives 2, 3, and 4 were documented by each intern in monthly report that they prepared. Each was provided training and hands-on experience in monitoring pests, natural enemies of pests, plant growth and development, implementing IPM principles and practices, evaluating biological data and in designing and evaluating biological demonstrations. Their accomplishments were documented through monthly and final reports.

Key Personnel

Interns, the University they represent, the academic department of their major, the IPM unit hosting the intern and the Extension Agent-IPM supervising the internship experience are listed in the table below:

Evaluation of Project

Each intern was asked to evaluate the internship program and the Extension Agent-IPM who supervised them. Each indicated that the Extension Agent-IPM provided quality training and opportunities excellent hands-on experience. The following table summarizes responses of interns to questions relative to the value of their internship experience.

How Valuable Was Your Internship Experience in the Following Ways?
(Please rate on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being very valuable and 5 being of no value)

Responses provided by interns indicate that the experience was very valuable in gaining knowledge and making relevant information gained in college courses. It was also helpful in clarifying educational goals and in helping to deciding future careers.
I will share several comments made by interns on their final evaluation instrument indicating their strong support of their IPM internship experience:

Cody Cook, “The internship was a quality experience... I do not feel that any changes should be made...every part of my summer was a meaningful learning experience."

Kurt Kresta, “This program exceeded all my expectations. I was able to work with and learn from several people in the agricultural community which I would not have been able to meet anywhere else. Another strong point of this program is it gave me the opportunity to take information I learned in the classroom and apply it in the field.”

Lacy Risner, “The highlight was getting to know the growers, learning their struggles and watching them persevere. I have a true appreciation for the farmer now. And I will never forget all that I learned this summer.”

Ben Beyer, “My responsibilities were just short of those given to an IPM Agent, no changes could improve the meaningfulness of the internship. The internship is a great program for students dealing in any way with crop production.”

Holly Englert, “Perhaps the experience I gained most from was working with a variety of people in the field of IPM. I was able to see what steps it takes for me to reach a professional level.”

We believe that the internship experience is valuable not only to the interns themselves but to fellow students with whom the interns interact and to future employers. Three of the interns made presentations to fellow students during seminars held in the fall of 2002. We think this is very beneficial to the presenting intern to students in the seminar classes and in helping recruit future interns. Interns armed with knowledge and experience in IPM will be valuable to employers and to the communities where they work whether they decide to become Extension Agents-IPM, consultants, work in other fields of agriculture or in other endeavors.
The IPM Internship Program was the topic of a poster presented at the Southwestern Branch of the Entomological Society of America meeting in Oklahoma City in February 2002 and will also be presented at the 4th National IPM Symposium in Indianapolis, Indiana in April, 2003 as a successful example of student outreach for other states.

Limitations and Future Plans

Future funding is the primary constraint in continuing and expanding the effort. We hope to continue and expand the IPM internship program in future years so that many additional students can benefit from the experience.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the support and cooperation of the Texas Department of Agriculture, the dedication of the Extension Agents-IPM who supervised interns and the Texas Pest Management Association IPM units that hosted interns.