Grow Iowa Ag Day on the Hill

A couple weeks ago, I experienced another "first." As a member of SFA, or Student Federation for Agriculture, I was privileged to attend the Grow Iowa Ag Day on the Hill event. I made the early morning (according to college student schedule) trek from Ames to Des Moines with a fellow SFA officer, Marshall Dolch. 

When we arrived, we met with a large group of Iowa agricultural enthusiasts including Dean Wintersteen, President of Iowa State, Steven Leath, and farmers from across the state to lobby our local legislators. We attended to show our support for the Iowa agricultural industry, specifically by urging the government leaders to increase the Iowa State University Experiment Station budget and support the Iowa Livestock Health Advisory Council. 

These decisions will have a big impact on our already impressive College of Veterinary Medicine. I know many livestock producers depend on those resources to improve their operations and keep Iowa ranked as a leader in agriculture. This funding will also help a growing number of students pursuing research and furthering their education at Iowa State. I know how much I have benefited from well funded programs within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and want other students to have the same great opportunities wherever their interests may lie.

Although, I really do care about livestock farmers and the impact this makes for them, as well as other students, I also encourage this support for more selfish reasons. As an Iowa State student, even if I am not part of the College of Veterinary Medicine, knowing they are on the cutting edge in the industry, makes me proud. Also, as I'm looking for a full time job in the near future, if employers hear about Iowa State for good things, it makes my degree worth more. Finally, as an Iowan in general, I love hearing my home state mentioned as the world leader when I attend conferences and seminars across the country.

As part of my first time lobbying efforts, I learned how to call my Representative out of session. Tom Sands, the Representative that serves my home county was kind enough to meet with me as well as show me around. We took the spiral stairs to sit in the viewing balcony and I watched the opening prayer and Pledge of Allegiance. Later he explained more about his job, the session schedule, and even how the desks are arranged on the floor. 

Honestly, I was a little nervous to go an talk to so many important people, but many men and women have sacrificed so much so we can have the privilege of participating in our government. I'm glad I finally learned how to take part in that process, and would encourage you all to do the same if you haven't. I look forward for my next opportunity to attend a Day on the Hill. Thanks for reading!

Photos courtesy of Iowa State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Communications Office, Brian Meyer

Hello again!

Hello again! I've taken a little break from blogging to prepare everything for the holidays, wrap up the academic semester, and begin a new job. In all I'm doing I find more and more things I want to share with you all, and want to take some time to catch up today!

First off, I've started another job! I joined the dataTHRESH team last month as the Marketing Communications Manager and have been learning tons about all the data tools available to farmers as they make decisions, like seed selection, for their farm. Within the first week on the job, my teammates and I hosted a tailgate event at Jack Trice to get to know farmers and Cyclone fans over hot cocoa and warm Hickory Park chili. I was so busy this fall, I didn't attend many football games, so tailgating and hanging out with new friends was a welcomed change of pace. For the rest of the school year, I will be traveling to trade shows and working behind the scenes to help the farmers that use our products.

In other exciting news, I officially accepted a Marketing Communications internship with Beck's Hybrids in Atlanta, Indiana for this summer. If you regularly follow my blog, you know I'm slightly obsessed with their #WhyIFarm videos and I can't wait to be a contributing member of their team. Over Christmas break, I plan to travel to the company headquarters to meet the rest of the department in person, and I'm really looking forward to the trip.

It feels like I've been spending a lot of time off campus with career related adventures, but on campus organizations have been keeping me busy too. In the last month, I have been elected to a couple officer positions and really look forward to growing the organizations that have made such a huge impact in my professional development. Keep your eyes open for posts about ISU Student Federation for Agriculture and the ISU Iowa Corn Growers Association. 

Even with all that's been going on, the opportunity for a blog post is always at the back of my mind. This holiday season has caused me to take time and reflect. Over Thanksgiving Break I wrote at least a half dozen thankfulness posts, but each got extremely lengthy and didn't even begin to cover all I was feeling. Finally, I decided to scrap all my drafts and start a #ThankfulThursday series. For the next year, I look forward to taking time to meditate on something I'm thankful for each Thursday. 

Finals are this coming week, and I will certainly be thankful when they are over. I'm excited to start this next series in my blogging journey! Thanks for reading!

Monday Night Movie Night, 5th edition!

Monday Night Movie Night is back... and it looks like it's here to stay! I've enjoyed all the feedback and video suggestions. Keep it coming!

A couple weeks ago at a Student Federation for Agriculture meeting we had a mini media night. After regular meeting business, we wrote letters to the editor, posted on social media, and watched agricultural videos. I'm kind of a nerd for tidbits and factoids so this clip was one of my favorites. You can always pick up a few interesting pieces of trivia in this sort of thing so watch closely!

I learn more about the pork industry every day. This video taught me how and what farmers feed pigs as they grow and mature. Specifically, I learned why feed is made into pellets. Watch this video and see if you can catch a couple reasons yourself.

In the last year or so, I've had a growing interest in dairy goats. Fortunately, I've been able to tour a few farms and taste some delicious goat cheeses. This video is from one of the dairies I follow on Facebook and hope to visit one day. It does a great job of explaining the business in a brief clip.

Ag facts, pig food, and dairy goats! Hope you've learned as much as I did researching these! Thanks for reading!

Wordless Wednesday: Highlights

Being a student at Iowa State University has given me so many unique opportunities! I wish I could write a blog post explaining each one. For now, here are a few photo highlights. Since school started I've had the chance to play the campanile, mentor Ag Business freshmen, and attend several picnics welcoming back all the students to campus. Meetings and homework fill my schedule, but every once in a while I get the chance to enjoy the beautiful fall weather. 

I'm so thankful for all I've been able to do so far this school year and that I can share a glimpse of it through these photos. Stay tuned for details of all my adventures. Thanks for reading!