The diversity of research performed in the Cooperative Agricultural Research Center (CARC) of Prairie View A&M University converges on the common point of leading the way in engaging graduate and undergraduate students from across the campus in research activities relevant to our daily lives. The CARC hired 44 students this summer to assist researchers with laboratory exercises and research objectives aimed at discovery and innovation for our stakeholders across the state of Texas and beyond.

 

The student’s engagement with agricultural science ranged from hands-on experience with daily operations on the university farm to assisting directors as counselors at the several residential summer camps exposing youth to careers in agriculture. Students were also involved in hypothesis-driven scientific research probing into studies of medicinal plants, organic crop production, building smart device apps, and data modeling. They enhanced their experiences with professional development workshops such as Using the Library Database, How to Build an ePortfolio, and Requirements for Graduate Studies.

 

 

Reflecting on the summerā€™s activities, Ali Fares, Associate Director for Research, indicated that agriculture intersects every discipline and is at the forefront of daily living.Ā  His appreciation for the efforts of research scientists who spend time and effort in preparing the next generation of researchers is immeasurable.

 

Summer internships and research activities are important resources for the growth of students. Laura Carson, Assistant Director for Compliance, Undergraduate Research and Student Success in the College of Agriculture and Human Sciences (CAHS) stressed the importance of using these type of resources to prepare for upcoming regional and national symposiums and professional development conferences like the TAMUS Annual Pathways Student Research Symposium.

 

“During this summer, I had the opportunity to work on both the investigative research and a bit on the coordination side of research, and was also able to gain a better understanding of my next steps affirming my pursuit of a career in veterinary medicine and wildlife biology,ā€ states Cayla Steemer a senior agriculture major who has been working on a departmental collaborative research project between Carson and Gloria Regisford, a Professor in the Department of Biology.

 

PVAMU senior chemical engineering major Ellen-Ashley Williams is no stranger to working in the CARC.Ā  Her first experience was when she worked in the International Goat Research Center with the Animal Systems research group on the reproduction of goats.Ā  This summer, Ellen-Ashley interned with the Food Systems group leader Deland Myers, an Endowed Professor of Food Science and System Leader. She stated, ā€œThis summer internship with the Food Systems group helped by showing me different ways that I can use my engineering degree.ā€

 

 

The CARC epitomize land-grant mission of the university by providing opportunities beyond the campus wall. Qiancheng Liu, MS computer science graduate at Texas A&M University, worked under the supervision of Ripendra Awal, Hamida Habibi, and Ali Fares. Liu indicated that working here in the CARC has shown him that there is vast market potential in agriculture and food. He plans to use the knowledge gained at Prairie View A&M University when he joins the Amazon team in September 2018. He wants to help their customers make informed purchasing decisions with a holist perspective on conditions in which the organic food grew, where it comes from, and what the soil conditions were to produce it on the farm.

 

In addition to Liu, the CARC welcomed Sujan Bhattarai, an MS student at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), who also worked under the supervision of Ripendra Awal, Hamida Habibi, and Ali Fares.Ā  Bhattarai modified a computer code that queries and processes weather data from different weather network across Texas (e.g., Texas ES networks and Texas Mesonet). The system was part of the Irrigation Water Estimator for Texas (IWET), a tool that will help Texans determine how much irrigation is needed to a grow a particular crop in diverse locations.Ā  Bhattarai believes that taking advantage of this internship program has impacted his career by helping him understand the importance of teamwork.Ā He says, ā€œThe summer intern position was a great experience and I learned how to work collaboratively with colleagues to deliver a viable result application for weather forecast and soil testing.ā€

 

During the oral and poster presentation sessions, Dean and Director Gerard D’Souza encouraged the interns to work hard at enhancing their communication and critical thinking skills while learning the technical terms associated with performing research.Ā  He emphasized the importance of gaining the employable skills that many industries are currently seeking in college graduates.

The Cooperative Agricultural Research Center extends special thanks and recognition to Kimberly Gay from the J.B. Coleman Library, Priscilla Johnson, Ph.D. from Career Services, and Carmen Carter, Ph.D. from the Office of Graduate Studies for their assistance and dedication.

This work was supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Evans-Allen 1890 Research Formula Program project under Section 1445.