Browsing by Author "Rice, Joshua"

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    Engaging Youth in Agriculture Career Exploration: 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge
    (University of Minnesota Extension, 2015) Rice, Joshua; Davis, Sharon; Rugg, Brad; Freeman, Dorothy; Grant, Samantha; Woeste, Marcia; Kostick, Renee; Ignaszewski, Tracy; Ward, Ann Marie
    The Minnesota 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge is a new youth development program that focuses on engaging youth in hands-on agriculture exploration while increasing agricultural literacy, enhancing STEM skills, and educating youth about career opportunities that exist within agricultural sciences. 4-H members identify an agricultural issue within their community and work with a business and industry mentor to apply STEM concepts to develop a potential solution. Teams share their research and results in their communities and at the state contest. The inaugural Science of Agriculture event was held June 17-19, of 2015 with 12 teams participating. There were a total of 44 youth participants with an average age of 15 years old. Twenty five (57%) of the participants were female and 19 (43%) were male. The youth were asked to complete a post event survey to determine the exposure to agriculture they experienced during the program and there interest in pursuing an agricultural career at the programs completion. The final survey response rate was 100% (N=44). Forty youth (92%) indicated that they had met with an agriculture community leader. Thirty nine youth (89%) planned to pursue a career in agriculture science and 35 youth (79%) wanted to study agriculture in college. The Minnesota 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge has the potential to fill the hole that currently exists in the agricultural career pipeline while teaching youth that their participation in 4-H can lead them to college and/or trade school and into a viable career in agricultural sciences.
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    The Public Value of Deep Winter Greenhouse Research and Extension
    (University of Minnesota Extension, 2016-10) Mohr, Caryn; Burgess-Champoux, Teri; Rice, Joshua; Schweser, Greg
    Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships’ (RSDP) work on Deep Winter Greenhouses (DWGs) addresses the need for Minnesota small- and mid-scale farmers to maintain year-round production. Recent University research supported by RSDP has found promising early evidence for the environmental and financial benefits of DWGs. Interest has grown, and in 2016 RSDP launched a statewide campaign to build five DWGs based on a prototype design by the Center for Sustainable Building Research (CSBR). From 2016-19, research conducted on these DWGs will investigate how the technology can be maximized to support behavior change (adoption of the technology). RSDP is uniquely positioned to address this issue due to the connection between scholarly expertise and access to community platforms needed to test and scale emerging DWG technology. This body of work illustrates Extension’s attention to emerging needs, support of scholarship, unique position as a trusted statewide network, and potential widespread impact on Minnesota’s food system, which aligns with the Minnesota Food Charter. Existing DWG producers will be surveyed for their perceptions of the impact of RSDP DWG services, change in participant (farmer) production practices, and impacts on the broader community and Minnesota’s food system.
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    Science of Agriculture Response: Integrating Science and Engineering Concepts into 4-H Youth Development
    (University of Minnesota Extension, 2014-10) Rice, Joshua
    Science achievement in the United States among K-12 youth has lagged behind many of their grade level peers from other countries for many years, prompting much concern from researchers as well as from federal agencies such as the National Academy of Sciences (2007). Non-formal educational experiences, such as those found in 4-H, play an important role in increasing children's exposure to, and interest in, science. Exposure to 4-H science-related programming in particular appears to be significantly associated with higher-level science coursework taken in high school (Heck, Carlos, Barnett & Smith, 2012). Research on science programs in non-formal settings has suggested that non-formal science programs have the potential to increase science interest among young people and that these programs can have long-lasting impacts (Heck, Carlos, Barnett & Smith, 2012). The science of agriculture response (SOAR) is designed to integrate and make the cognitive connection that exists between science content standards and 4-H member projects and community interactions. The University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development has been working to create the Science of Agriculture Response program. SOAR will utilize an experiential learning approach that employs the skills gained from a 4-H project and require students to demonstrate the acquisition of those concepts via a visual presentation. The 4-H members will participate on 3 levels; the local community level, regionally, and at the State 4-H Agriscience Summit. At the state summit, 4-H members will deliver oral presentations about an agriculture issue that exists within their community.