Pesticide Education

     While in my senior year of college I am studying to be an agriculture educator but I am also working as an intern for the Penn State’s Pesticide Education program.  As an employee for Pest Ed I find myself questioning all the time “Is this really work?” or “I’m getting paid for this?”  I am constantly amazed with how much I genuinely love my job.  Not only do I work with some of the most kind-hearted people but I also get to be an advocate for something that I believe in and that aligns perfectly with the work of my college studies. 

     For Pest Ed I promote the safety of using chemical products I teach young children the importance of Mr.  Yuk, a sticker that goes household products to signal children to stay away.  

     I also have been learning and educating people about the importance of proper airblast sprayer calibrations and how to correctly measure the appropriate amount of chemicals needed for a specific crop.  My personal belief is that pesticides are important and are a necessary part for our overall food production and that they must be used precisely according to their label. 

     Recently I was able to participate in several fantastic outreach events.  I worked at the Dive Deeper conference in Harrisburg which promoted clean waterways.  This conference was flooded with extension workers who were both public and private.  Everyone came prepared and ready to share classroom curriculum, teaching ideas, and resources related to watersheds and even community gardens.

     Another event that I participated in was a Kiddie Day at Keystone International Livestock Exposition (KILE).  This event was held at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, PA and children were bused to KILE from all over and around the city.  While the children participated in this Kiddie agriculture day they traveled to many different stations that promoted different components of agriculture and educated the students and their teachers about why they are important.  At the Pesticide Education booth I helped to share the importance of Mr. Yuk and the message that if you don’t know what something is you should not eat, drink, smell, or even touch it.  This is a message that seems very basic but unfortunately, the majority of poisonings reported at the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia hospitals are from children under the age of 5 and the toxic poisoning happened inside their home. 

     Just a few days later I participated in another event that had the same message in a community day in CenClear County.  While there I interacted with children and their parents from that community and helped to distribute and teach about the Mr. Yuk stickers to the visitors.   

     It is without hesitation that I love my job.  I enjoy writing lesson plans and helping to develop curriculum, but most importantly I find true value in the work that I do because I believe that it truly makes a difference!