Editor\u2019s Note: <\/em><\/strong>As we gear up for NC State\u2019s <\/em>2025 Day of Giving<\/em><\/a> on March 26, the N.C. PSI is highlighting passion-inspired, donor-fueled staff, students and others behind our plant sciences research, extension and workforce development efforts. This is the fifth and final story in the series.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n
As N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative interns, Suhanee Anand and Olivia McCormack have been indispensable in helping carry out the work of the initiative\u2019s Demo Lab<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n
This year, Suhanee and McCormack, both undergraduates in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences<\/a>, have gained experience in science education programming for middle and high school students.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n
When Anand was growing up in Cary, her family had a springtime ritual of filling her garden with annual vegetables and herbs and repotting perennial flowers. She developed a penchant for plants that blossomed in high school as horticulture classes and FFA involvement led her to her realize that she could make plants a career and, along the way, help humankind flourish.<\/p>\n\n\n
Now a sophomore in the departments of Horticultural Science<\/a> and Plant and Microbial Biology<\/a>, Anand is exploring ways to make agriculture more sustainable. She\u2019s interested in both teaching and research and is intrigued with the idea of conducting botanical research with NASA.<\/p>\n\n\n
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McCormack: \u201cMy time at the PSI has opened my eyes to the agricultural world.\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
McCormack, of Asheville, came to NC State with little knowledge of plant sciences and agriculture, but her internship with the N.C. PSI has opened her eyes to their importance and helped shape her educational and career goals.<\/p>\n\n\n
To fulfill an elective toward a degree in biochemistry<\/a>, McCormack had enrolled in a plant physiology class when she learned about the PSI internship opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n
The internship has given McCormack the chance to design several plant science-based protocols for teachers and to engage students directly in hands-on science activities. And it provided her with the motivation to add a second major in biological and agricultural engineering<\/a> and consider a career that would advance sustainable agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n
This post was originally published<\/a> in Plant Sciences Initiative.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false,"raw":"\n
Editor\u2019s Note: <\/em><\/strong>As we gear up for NC State\u2019s <\/em>2025 Day of Giving<\/em><\/a> on March 26, the N.C. PSI is highlighting passion-inspired, donor-fueled staff, students and others behind our plant sciences research, extension and workforce development efforts. This is the fifth and final story in the series.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n
As N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative interns, Suhanee Anand and Olivia McCormack have been indispensable in helping carry out the work of the initiative\u2019s Demo Lab<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n
This year, Suhanee and McCormack, both undergraduates in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences<\/a>, have gained experience in science education programming for middle and high school students.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n
Anand: \u2018Every time I walk into the Plant Sciences Building, I know I\u2019ll learn something new.\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
When Anand was growing up in Cary, her family had a springtime ritual of filling her garden with annual vegetables and herbs and repotting perennial flowers. She developed a penchant for plants that blossomed in high school as horticulture classes and FFA involvement led her to her realize that she could make plants a career and, along the way, help humankind flourish.<\/p>\n\n\n
Now a sophomore in the departments of Horticultural Science<\/a> and Plant and Microbial Biology<\/a>, Anand is exploring ways to make agriculture more sustainable. She\u2019s interested in both teaching and research and is intrigued with the idea of conducting botanical research with NASA.<\/p>\n\n\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n
McCormack: \u201cMy time at the PSI has opened my eyes to the agricultural world.\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
McCormack, of Asheville, came to NC State with little knowledge of plant sciences and agriculture, but her internship with the N.C. PSI has opened her eyes to their importance and helped shape her educational and career goals.<\/p>\n\n\n
To fulfill an elective toward a degree in biochemistry<\/a>, McCormack had enrolled in a plant physiology class when she learned about the PSI internship opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n
The internship has given McCormack the chance to design several plant science-based protocols for teachers and to engage students directly in hands-on science activities. And it provided her with the motivation to add a second major in biological and agricultural engineering<\/a> and consider a career that would advance sustainable agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n