Progress 09/01/10 to 08/31/15

Outputs
Target Audience:The program was a success in motivating students to attend college. Out of the 30 students, 29 (one dropped out, on the first day of reporting due to illness) successfully completed the program. Ninety percent of the program alumni are either currently enrolled or have completed college. Forty percent selected Fort Valley State University as their university of choice and half of the 40% enrolled in Agricultural Economics as their major. Fifty percent of the program participants have enrolled in other colleges and universities, namely, University of Georgia, Georgia Southern University, Albany State University, Georgia State University, Tuskegee University, Tennessee State University, and Darton College. About 7 percent (6.67%) went straight into the military. Two of the Agricultural Economics majors graduated in May 2015 with their bachelor's degrees and are currently employed by the USDA (NRCS and FSA). The program did raise the visibility of the Agricultural Economics Major. For example, the Agricultural Economics Program for the first time in many years enrolled over 13 first time incoming freshmen in the Fall 2015 Semester. Many students have also changed their majors to Agricultural Economics. Six studentsinterned with the USDA-NRCS andAgSouth. A total of 5 Agricultural Economics students also participated in undergraduate summer research at various 1862 institutions (University of Georgia and Kansas State).FortyAgricultural Economics students participated in the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting Quiz Bowls (Corpus Christy-2011, Birmingham-2012, Orlando-2013, Dallas-2014 and Atlanta-2015). Eight more students will be participating in the 2016 Quiz Bowl in San Antonio. One student won first place (Atlanta), 2 students won second place (Corpus Christi and Orlando)and 1 won third place (Birmingham).About 11 students participated in 2 Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) conferences in 2011 and 2013. One student won second (2013) and 2 won third places (2011 and 2013).Two students presented posters at the Professional Agricultural Workers Conference at Tuskegee University and also at the Association of Social and Behavioral Scientists (ASBS) conference in North Carolina. One student won the Theophilus McKinney Award.About 24 students have directly benefited from the grant through scholarships from 2011-2015. Over 30 students were hired as student workers during the life of the grant. This did help in student retention. For fall 2015, textbooks were purchased for 19 students taking introduction to agricultural economics and5 textbooks for some freshmen takingcollege algebra, pre-calculus and statistics. A reference library (books and DVDs) was created and 3 tablets and 3 laptops were purchased to facilitate teaching and learning. Faculty continued attending professional conferences (Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting and Agricultural and Applied Economics Association) and alsoparticipatedin various professional development workshops and on-campus seminars. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1 The program was a success in motivating students to attend college. Out of the 30 students, 29 (one dropped out, on the first day of reporting due to illness) successfully completed the program. Ninety percent of the program alumni are either currently enrolled or have completed college. Forty percent selected Fort Valley State University as their university of choice and half of the 40% enrolled in Agricultural Economics as their major. Fifty percent of the program participants have enrolled in other colleges and universities, namely, University of Georgia, Georgia Southern University, Albany State University, Georgia State University, Tuskegee University, Tennessee State University, and Darton College. About 7 percent (6.67) went straight into the military. Two of the agricultural economics majors graduated in May 2015 with their bachelor's degrees and are currently employed by the USDA (NRCS and FSA). The program did raise the visibility of the Agricultural Economics Major. For example, the Agricultural Economics Program for the first time in many years enrolled over 13 first time incoming freshmen in the Fall 2015 Semester. Many students have also changed their majors to Agricultural Economics. Objective 2 Six studentsinterned with the USDA-NRCS andAgSouth. A total of 5 Agricultural Economics students also participated in undergraduate summer research at various 1862 institutions (University of Georgia and Kansas State).FortyAgricultural Economics students participated in the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting Quiz Bowls (Corpus Christy-2011, Birmingham-2012, Orlando-2013, Dallas-2014 and Atlanta-2015). Eight more students will be participating in the 2016 Quiz Bowl in San Antonio. One student won first place (Atlanta), 2 students won second place (Corpus Christi and Orlando)and 1 won third place (Birmingham).About 11 students participated in 2 Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) conferences in 2011 and 2013. One student won second (2013) and 2 won third place (2011 and 2013).Two students presented posters at the Professional Agricultural Workers Conference at Tuskegee University and also at the Association of Social and Behavioral Scientists (ASBS) conference in North Carolina. One student won the Theophilus McKinney Award.About 24 students have directly benefited from the grant through scholarships from 2011-2015. Over 30 students were hired as student workers during the life of the grant. This did help in student retention. For Fall 2015 Semester, textbooks were purchased for 19 students taking Introduction to Agricultural Economics course and5 textbooks for some freshmen takingcollege algebra, pre-calculus, and statistics. A reference library (books and DVDs) was created and 3 tablets and 3 laptops were purchased to facilitate teaching and learning. Objective 3 Faculty continued attending professional conferences (Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting and Agricultural and Applied Economics Association) and alsoparticipatedin various professional development workshops and on-campus seminars.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2013 Citation: Mohammed Ibrahim. Consumer Attitudes toward Goat Meat: A Georgia Survey. Presented at the 71st Public Agricultural Workers Conference at Tuskegee University, Alabama, December 8-10, 2013.

Progress 09/01/13 to 08/31/14

Outputs
Target Audience:The program did raise the visibility of the agricultural economics major through the media reports on the activities of the program the university website. As a result, a number of students have changed their majors to agricultural economics. A total of 6 agricultural economics studentsinterned with the USDA-NRCSand AgSouth. Also 1 agricultural economics student participated in an undergraduate summer research program at Kansas State University.Seven students participated in the 2014 Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting Quiz Bowl in Dallas, Texas. About 4 students have directly benefited from the grant through scholarships in 2014. Over 10 students were hired as student workers during the fall 2013 and spring 2014 semesters. This did help in student retention. Faculty attended professional conferences and alsoparticipatedin various professional development workshops. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?A news release was madeon the participation of Agricultural Economics students in the 2014 quiz bowl in Dallas, Texas. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The programraised the visibility of the Agricultural Economics Major throughmedia reports onactivities of the program on the university's website. As a result, a number of students have changed their majors to agricultural economics. A total of 6 Agricultural Economics studentsinterned with the USDA-NRCSand AgSouth. Also, 1 Agricultural Economics student participated in an undergraduate summer research program at Kansas State University.Seven students participated in the 2014 Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting Quiz Bowl in Dallas, Texas. About 4 students diddirectly benefit from the grant through scholarships in 2014. Over 10 students were hired as student workers during the fall 2013 and spring 2014 semesters. This greatly did helped student retention in the Agricultural Economics Program. Faculty members attended professional conferences and alsoparticipatedin various professional development workshops.

Publications

Progress 09/01/12 to 08/31/13

Outputs
Target Audience: The target audience include high school students, high school counsellors, agricultural economics majors, and agricultural economics faculty. The target high school students include sophomores, juniors, seniors and recentgraduates. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Recent graduates of the agricultural program were hired as dorm counsellors. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? News write-up about the program was posted on the Fort Valley State University website, http://review.fvsu.edu/content/high-school-students-introduced-agricultural-economics What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? More agricultural economics majors will participate inregional conferences. The PI will try to recruitformer program particpants who are still in high school.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The Agricultural Economics Summer Enrichment Program was held June 2 – June 7, 2013. Publicity for the program began with brochures and applications in November, 2012 through March 15, 2013 from Houston, Peach, Macon, Bibb, Cobb, McDuffie, Fulton, Mitchell, Hancock, Gwinnett, Irvington and Telfair counties. Ten students were selected to participate. Participants were chosen based on their GPA, interest and teachable qualities as recommended by their teachers and counselors. The students received wholesome information. There were several sessions held with the students. Sunday, June 2, 2:00 p.m. was the opening session with the students and their parents to disseminate general information and to obtain signatures on official documents. Monday, June 3, 9:00 a.m., an orientation meeting was held with the students, FVSU administrators, faculty and staff. The daily Agricultural Economic enrichment sessions started at 10:00 a.m. June 3, immediately following the orientation session. Sessions were held daily from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. with one hour for lunch (12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m.). The students were exposed to a well-rounded enrichment program that included consultants in Agricultural Economics and Public Speaking, and FVSU faculty and staff from the following departments: English and Foreign Languages, Mathematics and Computer Sciences, Academic Success Center, Testing Center, Counseling Center, Admissions, Financial Aid. They also attended a SAT workshop. Supplies were provided for each student. At end of each day, the students were exposed to extra curriculum activities such as basketball, games, exercises, etc. A closing session was held on Friday afternoon, (June 7) with each student making a presentation based on his/her experiences in the program. The topics of the presentation ranged from “Now I Know” to “Lasting Knowledge.” Some of the other topics included, “A Week of Educational Impact,” “My Everlasting Experience,” and “An Endeavor towards Excellence,” to name a few. The presentations were competitive and the winners were chosen by a panel of three judges from the FVSU faculty and staff. First, second and third place trophies were given to the winners. Each student was presented with a Certificate of Accomplishment, a backpack with the program’s insignia, a stipend of $250.00 and the opportunity to receive a $2,000.00 scholarship ($1,000.00 per semester for the first year) if they attend The Fort Valley State University and major in Agricultural Economics. This year’s program yielded one FVSU Agricultural Economics major. The other students are in the process of completing their high school tenure. Also, a total of 5 students werehired asstudent workers using funds from the grant. A total of 14 Agricultural Economics majors participated in the 2013 Southern Agricultural Economics Associations meeting quiz bowl held in Orlando, Florida. One of the students was on the team that won second place. In addition, a total of 4 students participated in the 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) student paper competition held in Jacksonville, Florida (2013). Two students won second and third places in that competition. Finally, the PI participated in professional developments (webnar, workshops and seminars) related to teaching.

Publications

• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ibrahim, Mohammed, Amoah, Eugene and Whitehead, Jackie. "Recruitment, Retention and Graduation of Underrepresented Minorities for Successful Professional Careers in Agricultural Economics." Presented at the Project Directors' Conference at Alabama A&M University, Alabama, 2012.

Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: High school students from the middle Georgia area participated in a week-long residential Summer Agricultural Economics Enrichment Program. Participants were introduced to agricultural Economics and careers, public speaking, reading and writing, money management, entrepreneurship, campus life, function and careers at the USDA, careers in the private sector, how to use library resources and the admissions process. 2) Agricultural economics students attended the 2012 Southern Agricultural Economics Association quiz bowl held in Birmingham, Alabama. Students interned with the USDA-NRCS and the University of Georgia's College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (CAES) Emerging Scholar Summer Research Program. Students were hired to do clerical work during the fall and spring semesters as counselors during the week-long summer enrichment program. Efforts were made to encourage students to participate in Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS) and the Agricultural Economics Club. The PI attended workshop on Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL). Dissemination: The week-long summer enrichment program participants were issued back packs with FVSU agricultural economics logo and contacts written on it. A news article written about the 2012 summer program appeared on Fort Valley State University website: http://review.fvsu.edu/index.php/component/content/article/1-latest-n ews/1252-august-1georgia-students-complete-agricultural-economics-enr ichment-program. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim, Project Director, oversaw the whole project. Cynthia Allen was hired for both fall 2011 and spring 2012 semesters to perform clerical duties and two students (Richmond Brou and Millicent Cosby) were hired during the summer 2012 program as student counselors. Ms. Rhonda Colvin hired as a dorm counselor for the summer program. Dr. Benjamin Onyango, an Agricultural Economist, introduced high school participants to the discipline of agricultural economics, while Ms. Celesta Busch, a Public Speaking Coach, organized public speaking workshops for the participants. Other collaborators include: Dr. Josephine Davis (Mathematics Professor); Mrs. Shaundra Walker (Librarian); Dr. Erika Styles (Agricultural Economics - scholarships); Mrs. Vivian Fluellen (Money Management-extension); Dr. Romelda Simmons (Director of Career Development Center); Ms. Jocelyn Powell (Director of Academic Success Center); Ms. Dorothy Hardman (English Professor); Ms. Sheniqua Davison (Financial Aid Representative); Ms. Taneka Howard (College of Agriculture, Family Sciences and Technology recruiter); Ms. Karla Martin (USDA Liaison) and Mr. Edward Morrow (entrepreneurship). TARGET AUDIENCES: 1) Ten minority high school students: 7 females and 3 males; 4 seniors, 3 juniors, 2 sophomores and 1 incoming freshman. 2) One former participant (rising sophomore) interned with the USDA-NRCS in Florida, Agricultural Economics students participated in the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting Quiz Bowl and in agriculture related clubs (Ag Econ club, MANRRS and Agri-demic club). 3). At least one faculty member was engaged in professional development (POGIL Workshop). PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Ten high school minority students from the middle Georgia area participated in a week-long residential Summer Agricultural Economics Enrichment Program. One alumnus of the 2012 summer enrichment program enrolled as a freshman in the FVSU agricultural economics program. Three former participants (1 freshman and 2 sophomores) of the project majoring in agricultural economics were provided with financial support. Ten agricultural economics students attended and 9 participated the 2012 Southern Agricultural Economics Association quiz bowl held in Birmingham, Alabama. One FVSU student contestant was on the team that placed third. Quiz bowl participants gained self-confidence, collaboration and competitiveness. One of the former participants interned with one of the USDA-NRCS branches in Florida. Two senior agricultural economics students participated in the University of Georgia's College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (CAES) Emerging Scholar Summer Research Program. Three agricultural economics students were hired to do clerical work during the fall and spring semesters and as counselors during the week-long summer enrichment program. Participation of agricultural economics students in agriculture and agriculture related clubs increased by over 50%. The PI acquired new teaching techniques by attending a workshop on Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL).

Publications

• No publications reported this period

Progress 09/01/10 to 08/31/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Outputs for objective #1 - In order to establish the week-long residential summer enrichment program, the following activities were organized: (1) a laundry list of needs for implementation were identified, (2) the criteria for eligibility, (3) projects for the week-long curriculum were drawn, (4) arrangements for on-campus student living, (5) meeting with collaborative partners, (6) recruited prospective participants via high school counselors and Agriculture teachers, (7) scheduling of partners and implementation of the program, (8) recruitment of undergraduate counselors and payment arrangements. Thirteen teachers and counselors attended a meeting held on the Fort Valley State University Campus. The purpose of the meeting was to inform counselors what agricultural economics is and for them to recommend students for the program. Twenty two students from the surrounding counties applied for the program but only ten were chosen. One student withdrew due to illness. The students were introduced to Agricultural Economics and careers, public speaking, writing, reading and math. Other activities included campus life (housing, clubs, studying skills and testing and financial aid). Students were housed on campus and two student counselors were hired to supervise them. Students made presentations at the end of the program entitled, "What I Learned From this Experience." Outputs for objective #2 - In January 2011 one student was selected to participate in 2011 Agricultural Outlook Forum organized by the USDA. The following month, three agricultural economics students travelled to Corpus Christi, Texas to participate in a quiz bowl at the Southern agricultural Economics Association Meeting. One of the students was on the team that came second. In March 2011, a group of agricultural economics students travelled to participate in a MANNRS conference and one student came first in an oral competition. A group of seven students took part in an undergraduate student research competition at the 16th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of Research Directors (ARD) held in Atlanta, Georgia. One of the students came in third. Four alumni of the week-long summer program enrolled as freshmen and chose Agricultural economics as their major. All four freshmen were awarded $2000 scholarships each for the 2011-2012 academic year. Outputs for objective #3- No workshops or seminars were attended during this period. Reason for slippage Objective #1: Evaluations were not conducted. Before and after program surveys were conducted but the results did not give much information. Formal exit interviews were not conducted but participants gave indications as to what went right and what needed improving. This year we did not involve a representative from the private sector. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim serves as the project's principal investigator. The other PIs include Dr. Eugene Amoah and Mrs. Jackie Whitehead. The project's collaborative team includes representatives from Fort Valley State University (FVSU) Cooperative Extension Service, Career Development Center, and the Academic Success. Also, about 13 guidance counselors and agriculture science teachers from local high schools participated. Students: assist, in clerical duties, mentoring and as dorm monitors. TARGET AUDIENCES: Our target audience include students (sophomores, juniors and seniors), guidance counselors and agriculture science teachers from local high schools. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
We are utilizing the following outcomes as our measure of project effectiveness: Introduction to Agricultural Economics was specifically designed for the week-long residential program. Activities ranged from an overview of agricultural economics to careers. The following are outcomes of such activities. After participating in the program, participants indicated that they now have a better understanding of agricultural economics and careers in food and fiber industries. Five alumni of the week-long summer program enrolled as freshmen and four chose agricultural economics as their major. All four agricultural economics freshmen were awarded $2000 scholarships each for the 2011-2012 academic year.

Publications

• No publications reported this period