CANR Dean's column Summer 2014
Print
EmailSometimes people ask me why Michigan State University and our college push students to study internationally when what we need is more young people staying in Michigan.
Sometimes people ask me why Michigan State University and our college push students to study internationally when what we need is more young people staying in Michigan. My answers are simple: They are bold. They need perspective and experience. And there’s nothing like hands-on learning. The world is a much smaller place. The industries in which our students will find careers often feature some international aspect and we expect our graduates to be able to collaborate with people from all around the world.
Our students never cease to amaze me with their generosity of time and talent, as well as their bravery. It takes a pretty brave soul to venture into a foreign country where you may or may not know the language, and then to jump in with both feet and start learning, or helping. MSU students participate in study abroad and join the Peace Corps and other volunteer organizations at a rate that is impressive. For the past five years, MSU has been in the top 10 schools sending students to work in the Peace Corps. Our students are bold.
Early this semester, we signed a new and improved agreement with Northern Ireland College of Agriculture Food and Rural Enterprise to ensure that not only our students can move back and forth between there and here, but also our faculty members will have opportunities to do so too. This agreement will give our students and faculty members the opportunity of living overseas and gaining valuable experience.
Some of our animal science students are just back from studying dairy farms in the Netherlands with Elizabeth Karcher. Later this month, the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture association will recognize Liz for her excellence in teaching. She insists on having her students do a visit with a host family, and tour farms and factories so they can bring this perspective back to Michigan.
An elite team of graduate students and their counterparts from Washington State University are in Rwanda, working together to answer some of the country’s most pressing coffee questions. The six students are working on an independent study. Having communicated with each other all semester long, they now meet up for a few weeks in Africa. Their collaboration is an excellent experience for what the world and our state needs.
No one exemplified this boldness, generosity and willingness to gain experience and hands-on learning more than our College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Student of the Year Chelsea Rawe. Maybe it’s because Chelsea and I share a common degree in entomology, or maybe I was impressed with her willingness to take on two majors and a minor or two. Coupled with her study abroad and her involvement in student clubs and organizations, I was struck by how she took it all in stride, and told us at commencement that she has learned that there is still much more to learn. She said she was lucky to have all the opportunities she did and felt it necessary to give back. Chelsea begins two years with the Peace Corps in Nepal where she will work on food security issues.
It’s bold students like these – who gain perspective, experience and hands-on learning – who we want in our communities, in our state and even around the world.
