Cale Belhm, Oklahoma State University (Pi Chapter) student spent his summer as an intern with AgVenture. This 12-week product and marketing internship was based out of the Corteva Agriscience campus in Johnston, Iowa. During his time, he was responsible for three primary projects, among daily tasks. The first was an Agronomy library filled with agronomic content as well as AgVenture content, with intent to use for internal training once completed this fall. The second project was a corn on corn rating project, which included gathering data throughout the summer in order to put in AgVenture’s seed guides. The last primary project included setting up and planning a seed plot tour for several customers. Cale says Alpha Gamma Rho prepared him in a way that was invaluable to him for this summer, and the rest of his life. “Being in a social professional fraternity has prepared me for the business world at a young age. It showed me values that I would have never had if it wasn’t for AGR. It showed to my colleagues and customers this summer, the motivation to step outside of my comfort zone and ability to present myself in a professional manner, even at a young age.”
Cornell University (Zeta Chapter) student, Sampson Alley used the majority of his time this summer compiling and analyzing land sale data to predict land appreciation trends in different regions. His internship with Hancock Agricultural Investment Group ranged in projects involving market research and the retrieval and analysis of data. In addition to analyzing land sale data, Sampson also identified qualities of farmland that might influence appreciation. Sampson credits Alpha Gamm Rho’s vast networking opportunities that led to his internship. “The President of Hancock Agricultural Investment Group, Oliver Williams, is an alumnus of AGR Zeta Chapter at Cornell and his connection definitely led me to my internship.”
Luis Mendoza, Fresno State University (Alpha Sigma Chapter) student, utilized his time this summer as an Agronomy Intern for Syngenta Crop Solutions in Central California. During his time with Syngenta, Mendoza was responsible for planning and running trials for new crop solutions, taking root samples for Elisa, Propagule and Pythium testing, the primary focus of his internship was to learn more about plant diseases and what symptoms to look for. Additionally, he was tasked with piloting a new app that is in development and submitting reports of ideas and bugs to be added or fixed. Mendoza says, “I was able to learn a lot of new and exciting things about the crop industry and grew a passion for it that I plan on pursuing into a career upon graduation.” He credits Alpha Gamma Rho with professional tools he used to have a successful interview for the internship and the confidence to stand in front of a board of Syngenta employees and present is internship project.
