UGA students put agriculture knowledge to work in school garden

By Andrea Gonzalez

Taken From GeorgiaFACES

 

Members of professional agricultural sorority Sigma Alpha planted a pizza garden at Charles Ellis Elementary School in Savannah, Ga., in March 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Members of professional agricultural sorority Sigma Alpha helped clear, plan and plant a garden at Charles Ellis Elementary School in Savannah, Ga., in March 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A group of college students spending a weekend at the beach is a common occurrence. Having them take time out from sunbathing to weed a community garden is rare.

 

Recently, members of the University of Georgia Sigma Alpha professional agricultural sorority did just that. The sorority travelled to Savannah, Ga., for a sisterhood retreat. While there, they put the horticulture skills they are learning through the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences to use at Charles Ellis Elementary School.

 

Unlike other schools in the area, Ellis is a public Montessori school focused on hands-on and exploratory learning. For several years, the teachers there have wanted a garden where the students can plant, tend and harvest their own vegetables.

 

Since one of Sigma Alpha's main goals is community service, the perfect partnership was formed. Sigma Alpha helped plan the school’s garden, which had become overgrown. Teri Schell of the Forsyth Farmers Market in Savannah organized the service day.Schell said the students will benefit from having a garden because they will be able to see the full circle of food, from planting it, to growing it to eating it.

 

Lynsey Jackson, a UGA senior from Covington, Ga., worked with Schell to get the sorority involved. When asked why community service is important, she said, “If we don’t help, who will?”

 

The UGA students surveyed the proposed location, gave insight on what needed to be done and then cleared the area of weeds and leaves. They also worked with students to plant a peach tree and several blueberry bushes.

 

They also helped Patra Rickman, a pre-k and kindergarten teacher at Ellis, plant a pizza garden. All of the vegetables in this garden can be used as pizza toppings.

 

Rickman said the garden is an important tool for showing students a "real-life example on the food cycle and how to take care of the earth." For her, it is essential that students are able to see the big picture, especially because so many children these days are not aware of where their food comes from.

 

By helping design the school garden, the UGA students used the skills learned in their CAES courses. Based on their suggestions, the school plans to build four raised beds for students to tend. The Sigma Alpha students suggested raised beds because they minimize weeds and will make the plots more visible to keep them from being trampled by the students.The elementary school students aren’t the only ones who benefited from the project.

 

"It is important to help others that aren't as fortunate and to make the community a better place to live," said Karen Stubbs, a UGA sophomore from Suwanee, Ga.

 

Nashville Urban Harvest-Sisterhood Retreat

Taken from the Nashville Urban Harvest Blog 

We should definitely start out by saying, wow, and thank you to everyone who made it out this busy busy weekend. Not only did we have forty + volunteers out but they came at a time when Vanderbilt was having their Rites of Spring Festival, Grimey's record store was having their Record Store Day event and Centennial Park was having their annual Earth Day celebration. 

We had a ton of folks out from the Sigma Alpha agricultural sorority from the University of Georgia, a few folks from Hands On Nashville and the Vine Street Christian Church. I think everyone genuinely had a good time and we got a great deal of work done. We were a little more organized for this day so we had stations laid out for everyone from painting new signs to planting potatoes. I also got to start my symbiotic project with the wheat bales, elm oyster mushrooms, and tomatoes. 

It was also a sad day not to have Tim out at the farm. He is on his bike journey to California but he left us with a beautiful hoop house that the U of G girls painted. He and I started it on Tuesday and with the help we had this weekend we are two to three steps from being complete. Tim and I made the frame and put together the pvc pipe from a sketch he found from an agricultural extension program. We still have to make the door frame and put up the plastic but when it is finished we will really be able to adequately start seedlings. I must say that we've had some ruff starts this year on that end. The artificial light no matter what spectrum you use does not match a green house by any means. Ohh, and I failed to mention that we got all the material for well under four hundred dollars. You are missed Tim.

While some of the Sigma Alpha's were painting, the others were down on the other end helping our new volunteer Rob and our intern Justin measure out drip tape and prepare the new beds we made a couple of weeks ago. Rob grew up on a farm so we are lucky to have someone with a little knowledge on agriculture. He also teaches French at Vanderbilt so he can handle a large group of college students. After they were done with the rows they planted zucchini, squash, and cucumbers. Hopefully since they are in the row cover that will help with the vine bores we've had so much trouble with in the past. 

Sarah had the help of a couple of Sigma Alpha ladies in preparing a bean tee pee that will be surrounded in a maze of sunflowers. The beans they used are an heirloom variety that Amanda had gotten from her mother who got it form her mother. I'm not sure how far the lineage goes with these beans but we are grateful to have them and help pass down this rare variety. I can't wait to see them in full effect!Ali, Kate and her friend Tara from Brooklyn got together with the Vine Hill Church and Hands On Nashville crew to make much needed signs for the garden. They hand painted wood that we can use to identify what is growing, why we do certain things and so that folks can look around without a guide with some understanding of what is growing and how we operate. My favorite one is Composting 101. 

Old Hugh Hansen stopped by too with his daughter Stella and put up a new trellis for the hops. He also gave us some tomato plants to use in the wheat bales that proved to be a little harder than we anticipated. Shoving a spade into a bale to make a hole large enough for a tomato plant is no easy task. They were a little dry which exacerbated the situation. Our new friends Will and Jenny worked on it all day and we still had to put some elbow grease into it later. We got 12 out of the 19 bales filled with toms but I still need to plant the mint and cilantro. Mint is a good companion plant for tomatoes because it wards off bad bugs. We also used a t-post to hold up the tomatoes when they grow a little larger. The tomatoes were a little tall but with the effort it took just to get them in the bales I decided to take a chance and roll with it anyways. We also got some of the starts from the Delvin's farm which apparently was started by Hank Sr (not to be confused with the Williams) a little early and rose to great heights at the "amusement" of Hank Jr. Thank you Hank for the tomatoes. They have a wonderful CSA if anyone didn't make our CSA this year. 

I took the group to the fresh rows that Rob carved and planted the Kennebec potatoes we got from Johnny's last week and the New Orleans potatoes we got from Tana Comer at Eatons Creek Organics . You've got to plant your potatoes deep so they don't see the light of day and grow many more potatoes. Before you plant them though you've got cut them up with two eyes per potato. After they have dried for the night you plant them eyes up about eight inches apart. MMMmmm, I can't get enough potatoes. 
After the volunteer session Sarah, Justin and I went to the Earth Day Celebration and gave a speech on what we do at the community farm and why we think it is important. We had a good turn out and really made some head way with some of the folks we didn't know. We ended the day watching the Dynamites and eating chips and salsa we got from the Whole Foods Stand. It was a good day and hopefully a good one for the Earth as well. Peace.

 

Sisters in the NewsAnimal Science Major and FFA Leader

Taken From CAES Student Profiles

Photo courtesy of the National FFA Organization 

 

This upcoming year, Regina Holliday will spend 300 days on the road; travel about 300,000 miles; encourage more than 500,000 FFA members; and visit 40 states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Japan – this all after wrapping up her fall 2008 semester in three weeks instead of five.It's all just a part of her job as the 2008-2009 National FFA Southern Region Vice President.

Regina's Student Profile
Name: Regina Holliday 

Hometown: Dublin, Ga.

Estimated semester/year of graduation: Spring 2011

Major: Animal Science

National Honor
On Oct. 25, 2008, at the 81st National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Ind., Regina learned that she had been elected a national FFA officer. Her journey to that position started seven years ago when she was a ninth grader at East Laurens High School.

"FFA gives you confidence you need, and it allows you to be yourself," Regina said. "It helped me go down a career path" and helped her figure out "this is what I want to do, and this is how I'll do it."

To become a national FFA officer, Regina first qualified at the state level. She then submitted an application listing her accomplishments and contributions to the community – which for Regina included being a College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Ambassador and member of Sigma Alpha agricultural sorority and the UGA Block and Bridle Club. She has also volunteered with the youth of her Dublin church and at the Humane Society, local hospital and a children's hospital.

Regina also has her own cattle operation, Hilltop Farm in Dublin. She started the farm as part of a FFA project. Her operation has grown from one heifer to 16 that she owns, manages and takes care of.

Back at the National FFA convention, she survived five rounds of interviews, an in-depth writing test on FFA organizational and agricultural education topics and two writing exercises. She was then one of six students elected from a pool of 38.

She's the only Southern girl in the mix. The other representatives hail from California, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas and Oklahoma.

"Today we may be in Montana and tomorrow in Rhode Island," she said of their yearlong experience. "I'll be living out of a suitcase, and I’m ready to start. I have some great teammates."

Back at UGA
"I came back to school, and some people had a surprise party for me," she said. She's also enjoyed the hugs, congratulatory Facebook messages, and being able to go to class and "be myself for a couple of weeks."

After her year is up, Regina will finish her animal science degree – and use her many frequent flier miles for a trip to Mexico. She’ll also get to play with her new calves, who she missed being born because she was in Indianapolis.

After graduating from CAES, Regina plans to study large animal medicine. With her doctorate of veterinary medicine, she hopes to practice in rural areas of Georgia, to "do the hands-on work," she said, "knowing that there's a need, and that I can help alleviate that."

FFA, formerly known as Future Farmers of America, has 507,763 student members as a part of 7,439 local FFA chapters in the U.S. and its territories. Regina is a member of the East Laurens High School chapter. She is the daughter of Tom and Mary Ann Holliday.

 

Ag Safety Day 2008 - Sorority restarts annual ag safety day

Taken from CAES News

With fall semester in full swing, the University of Georgia's Sigma Alpha sorority is one step closer to their next Agricultural Safety Day. Their 2008 event was held at Barrow Elementary School in the spring and exposed 440 pre-kindergarten through fifth grade students to a little bit of farm life.

They're hoping to expand to two events this school year.
At Barrow Elementary, that day of agriculture came mostly visibly in animal form. Students petted piglets, an ewe and two lambs, a calf, snakes, dairy bull calves and horses.

Some of the main events were animal and dairy science students prancing on about horse care and safety, local beekeepers revealing where honey comes from, crop and soil science professor Keith Karnok dazzling with ag magic acts, Walton EMC sizzling with electrical safety lessons, the Georgia Soil and Water Commission dropping in for a lesson on rainwater and John Deere representative Keith Rowland talking safety around round hay bales.

"Even I learned something at ag safety day," said Whitney Kizer, the Sigma Alpha sister who headed up the event. "It was a teaching experience for us as well as a learning opportunity."

Whitney is an animal science major in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Her goal for the day was not only to see smiles and excitement on the students' faces. She also wanted the elementary school's faculty to be happy they agreed to let the sorority invade their campus.

Teachers and administrators "have so much emphasis on curriculum and meeting those state standards," she said. "...The biggest thing for me, as the product of educators, was not only the great response from the parents but from the faculty. That’s what made all the difference in the world for me."

The students were still talking about the ag safety day three weeks later, and Whitney has two manila envelopes full of thank you notes the kids made.

"It was kind of like my child," Whitney said of the ag day. "I was really proud of it."
Sigma Alpha started holding ag safety days several years ago at the Animal and Dairy Science Arena on South Milledge Avenue. Then the event got shelved for two years until Whitney came along. Because of her experience with big projects, she was elected to resurface the event.

The Greenbrier High School graduate said she’s not alone in making the safety day a success, pointing to her committee members when asked how she pulled the event off. She also points to her college.

"The College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is trying to expand and expose people to new things," she said. "This was big for CAES, animal and dairy science and south campus in general."

Besides various CAES departments, the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources was also present at the event, along with other corporate, public and private sponsors.

"We were dealing with people who don't know a lot about agriculture...hopefully we did a good job exposing kids to something they would never see otherwise," Whitney said.

About Sigma Alpha
In September 2000, two UGA students officially started UGA's Sigma Alpha, Alpha Omicron chapter with 20 members. The chapter now has over 60 active members.
"It's a great organization of girls who all share an interest and love for agriculture in one way or another," Whitney said.

UGA students don't have to be enrolled in CAES to be members of the sorority. They can even be both "north and south campus girls." Sorority members' majors range from animal science to political science to forestry to family and consumer science.
"We host a broad range, and everybody brings something different to the table," Whitney said.

For more information on Sigma Alpha, visit www.ugasigmaalpha.com.

Photo Gallery

 Students made many discoveries during Ag Safety Day at Barrow Elementary School. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Whitney Kizer, Sigma Alpha sister and animal science major, pictured with students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alpha Omicron Chapter—Agricultural Safety and Awareness Day Events

By: Dallas Duncan

The sisters of Alpha Omicron chapter at the University of Georgia strive hard to uphold the ideals of Sigma Alpha. This past spring, sisters took on a new level of being representatives for agriculture.  

Every year, Alpha Omicron has held an “Agricultural Safety Day” program at Barrow Elementary School in Athens, Georgia. This year’s program featured spokespersons from various departments at the University, as well as John Deere, the Georgia Soil and
Water Commission, Walton EMC, and many other businesses. Elementary-age students were introduced to traditional aspects of agriculture including farm animals and equipment. Many of these students had never seen pigs and cows, much less gotten to sit on tractors! 

 

In addition to the annual Safety Day, the sisters decided to bridge the gap between two different areas of the University campus. At University of Georgia, the agriculture and science buildings are located on South Campus, while North Campus holds the University’s office buildings, and classes for all other majors. Due to the separation, numerous students at the University fall prey to the traditional stereotypes that the term “agriculture” implies. Alpha Omicron chapter decided to begin a new annual program, “Agricultural Awareness Day at UGA.”  

The sisters chose a central location on campus and invited organizations and departments from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, and the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources to come and showcase what modern agriculture had to offer.  

With both programs being successes, Alpha Omicron plans to keep them in their yearly schedule and hopes for more participation in the future. Keeping the community informed about agriculture will not only help the chapter fulfill its purpose of developing “excellence in women pursuing careers in agriculture,” but excellence and understanding in those pursuing other careers as well.

 

 

 

Sister to Represent University

By: Dallas Duncan

      While the rest of the University’s students were enjoying fun in the summer sun, Regina Holliday was interviewing to be Georgia’s candidate for the Future Farmers of America (FFA) officer selection process. 

      Once Holliday, a junior Animal Science major from Dublin, was chosen to be Georgia’s candidate, she underwent an application process based on all of her past academic and extracurricular activities, which for Holliday includes showing livestock and being a National FFA proficiency finalist honor in 2007.  

      The annual FFA National Convention included the final five-round interview elimination process for the 2008-2009 national officers. Holliday said the interviews covered topics such as “FFA current events, agricultural issues, and agricultural education issues. We also had to take an in-depth written test on the organization and agricultural education topics and complete two writing exercises relating to the ‘hot topic’ of the year.” In addition, officer candidates submitted written essays about their Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE).  

      Holliday was chosen to be the 2008-2009 Southern Region Vice-President. She will spend the next year representing the University, CAES and the University’s FFA chapter as she travels to Japan and all over the United States. She will meet with top leaders in business, government and education, have the opportunity to train students in leadership and personal growth, and “[set] policies that shape the future of the organization and [promote] agricultural literacy.”  

      “I believe that each student has the opportunity to promote agriculture in our daily lives,” Holliday said. “Think about all of the items we use in our daily lives, and realize that everything stems from agriculture in some shape or form. As I travel the world this year, it is my hope to share with others the true value of our nation’s leading industry and its importance to our survival and well-being. Of course,” she adds, “there will be some ‘calling of the dawgs’ along the way.”   

 

Sigma Alpha in the News!

 

Red and Black

-April 6, 2010

-March 30, 2006
-November 7, 2003
-October 2, 2000
-February 2, 2000
-February 7, 2000

Ag Hill Topper

November/December 2008

February and September 2002

April, Fall 2001

November 2000