Education can take place in a variety of settings. In fact, during fall 1999, five undergraduate students from the College of Agricultural Sciences pioneered a new program that will prepare them to promote agriculture from the halls of the nation's capitol.

The students were the college's first participants in the Leadership in Agriculture Program, a semester-long internship based in Washington, D.C. Offered by the college in cooperation with the College of Communications' Penn State Washington Program, it enables students to intern in the nation's capital without sacrificing a semester of courses.

"To prepare tomorrow's leaders in American agriculture, we should teach them to include local, regional, national, and international perspectives in their understanding of agricultural policy," says James Mortensen, associate dean for undergraduate education. "The Leadership in Agriculture Program blends academic theory, professional education and development, and an understanding of how public policy is formulated in the field, and makes it all practical by providing daily contact with the people who manage the nation's public agricultural policies."

Students in the program fill positions with various senate and congressional offices, with agriculture-related federal agencies, and with agricultural trade associations, lobbying firms, and environmental agencies.

While in Washington, the students maintained a full 12-credit course load taught by distinguished lecturers and Penn State faculty. Barbara Wade, senior Division of Undergraduate Studies Programs coordinator for the college, traveled to Washington weekly to teach a course in public policy and leadership in agriculture with other faculty, including James Dunn, professor of agricultural economics, Pat Whittington, assistant to the dean for undergraduate education, and Susie Whittington, associate professor of agricultural and extension education. Students also attended courses taught by Charles Bierbauer, CNN senior Washington correspondent, and Lyle Denniston, longtime U.S. Supreme Court reporter for The Baltimore Sun.

The students commuted to their jobs from student housing in Arlington. In addition to their course work and internships, they were treated to tours of significant Washington landmarks. In August, the students visited the National Press Club to hear Penn State President Graham Spanier speak on higher education issues.

Lincoln Rodgers, a junior in agricultural science, worked for U.S. Senator Rick Santorum. Rodgers, whose duties included staffing the committee looking into biotechnology issues, says that government's often glacial pace can actually work to its advantage in dealing with the fast-changing world of high technology, and he's getting better at gauging a bill's chances.

Matthew Scholl, a junior in forest science, interned for Representative Tim Holden. He worked on issues related to Pennsylvania drought damage, crop losses due to wet weather in North Dakota, and depressed commodity prices in Iowa. He's also become well versed in USDA's federal disaster programs, crop insurance, and emergency disaster loans. "This might sound like a dry issue, but it is an important one," he says. "The biggest business in the United States is agriculture. To leave our farmers without a proper source of aid during their time of need would be detrimental not only to them, but also to the American economy."

Tim Redd, a junior in dairy and animal science minoring in agricultural communications, interned for the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, chaired by Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana. "Much of my day was spent walking around the Senate buildings getting signatures from senators on a letter being sent to the Secretary of Agriculture," he wrote in a journal entry. "In the middle of the day, I attended a lecture presented by the Pew Center for Global Climate Change. The two speakers talked about how changes in climate affect precipitation, water quality, runoff, and other aspects of water and ecosystems. After the lecture I had to write a memo for some people on the Ag Committee who were unable to attend."

Wade's weekly classes with the interns allowed her to watch them grow and mature. "They got to understand the political process and how government really works," she says. "They now understand the issues far better than they did before coming. They also now know how important communications, writing, and research skills are."

Plans for the future include the possibility of expanding the program to include up to 15 students and greater involvement with Penn State alumni in the region. For more information, contact Barbara Wade at (814) 865-7521.

-- Gary Abdullah