UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Five students in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences recently walked away with the bulk of the university's awards for international activities and accomplishments.

Jacquie Pratt, a senior from Lancaster majoring in agricultural and extension education, received the W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award for undergraduates; David Bittner, a senior from Somerset County majoring in agricultural and extension education, received honorable mention for the LaMarr Kopp Award for undergraduates; Wilmara Harder from Brazil, who is pursuing a doctorate in agricultural and extension education, received the LaMarr Kopp Award for graduate students; Maya Nehme from Lebanon, who is pursing a doctorate in entomology, received the Ardeth and Norman Frisbey International Student Award for all students; and Jorge Elizondo Salazar from Costa Rica, a doctoral candidate in animal sciences, received the Frisbey Award for graduate students.

The W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Awards are designed to recognize those at Penn State who make extraordinary contributions to the advancement of the international mission of the university. Four awards are given annually in the categories of undergraduate student, graduate student, staff member and faculty member. Criteria for the awards include leadership and support for international education, service to the international community, and research with a significant international component. Each award carries a $1,000 cash award and a plaque.

The Frisbey International Student Award honors and recognizes outstanding contributions to international understanding by graduate/undergraduate international students enrolled in full-time resident instruction or its equivalent. Three Frisbey awards of $1,000 each are given annually to an undergraduate international student, a graduate international student, and an outstanding student leader, regardless of academic level.

"These awards reflect the growing emphasis by the college on international programs for students, both U.S. and international," says Deanna Behring, director of international programs for the College of Agricultural Sciences. "Since 2000, the number of students seeking an international experience as part of their undergraduate academic career has steadily increased. In the past five years, the college has sent more than 500 students on embedded, short-term programs of varying lengths, more than 110 students on semester programs, 50-plus on summer programs and 25 students on international summer internships."

In 1999, according to Behring, less than 1 percent of students in the College of Agricultural Sciences went abroad in programs; this year about 12 percent will go abroad for academic programs, research or internships.

--Pratt became involved with international programs in the College of Agricultural Sciences in her freshman year. She started the Penn State International Association of Agricultural Students, recruiting members, organizing a group of officers and seeking and receiving official Penn State club status. Fluent in Spanish, Pratt has had a service-learning experience in Belize and an unpaid summer internship at Guanajuato University in Mexico. In addition, she participates in leadership roles in Ag Advocates, Collegiate FFA, Block & Bridle and Christians in Action.

--Bittner traveled to Morocco to analyze export-market access for U.S. grain and conduct feasibility studies in the major port cities of Casablanca, Rabat, Agadir and Tangier. He met with the U.S. ambassador to Morocco to discuss World Trade Organization restrictions on trade and made recommendations for increasing market access and stimulating local economies.

He also took a study tour of agriculture in the Andalusia region of southern Spain; focusing on wine, grain, dairy, olive and livestock production. Bittner has also taken classes at the Moscow State Agro-Engineering University in Russia. --Nehme's research is international in scope, studying the behavior and pheromonal response of the Asian long-horned beetle, an invader from China that threatens to destroy several hardwood tree species in the United States. These beetles enter the country in the wood of packing crates used to ship Chinese exports.

While most of her laboratory and field work will occur in the United States, she will conduct several experiments in China in 2007. While there, she will observe how government research, regulatory issues and outreach differ in Asia. In addition, she will be able to judge how any recommendations that emerge from her biological research may be incorporated into Chinese forest management and export systems.

--Harder, who has been a teaching assistant in international agriculture classes, has traveled with students journeying to Puerto Rico, Brazil and Russia. Her research could assist Penn State in developing greater interest in study-abroad programs. She is evaluating the process of streaming videos in changing attitudes and has created three videos about various study-abroad locations.

In addition, she has presented her research about international agricultural development domestically and at a European extension education conference in the Czech Republic.

--Elizondo, a faculty member at the University of Costa Rica, received a Fulbright Scholarship to come to Penn State. He has written many articles about animal science research in the United States, which were published in Costa Rica to help farmers in that country stay abreast of modern agricultural development. He also has traveled widely doing volunteer work, such as talking to international audiences about Costa Rica and conducting training seminars for Hispanic dairy farm employees. EDITORS: For more information, contact Deanna Behring at (814)863-0249 or by e-mail at dmb37@psu.edu.

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Jeff Mulhollem (814) 863-2719 jjm29@psu.edu