Students

Pick up your spirits and a pumpkin at AGNR’s annual Pick & Treat! 🎃

Take a break from UMD Spooky Season (aka Midterms) on Thursday, October 30 from 2:30-4:30pm to enjoy some festive fall fun as we turn the Animal Sciences courtyard into a pumpkin patch.

Mark your calendars to come pick a pumpkin grown at our very own Wye Research & Education Center and discover what treats await! Costumes and furry companions are welcome!

This session will cover design fundamentals for solar energy systems, including site assessment, system sizing, and planning considerations for residential and agricultural applications. It is the third webinar in the Fall 2025 Solar Energy Webinar Series, which introduces key topics in solar energy for Maryland residents and professionals. Hosted by Drew Schiavone, Energy Specialist with University of Maryland Extension.

This session will explain the fundamentals of solar PV technology, including energy conversion, system components, and performance considerations. It is the second webinar in the Fall 2025 Solar Energy Webinar Series, which introduces key topics in solar energy for Maryland residents and professionals. Hosted by Drew Schiavone, Energy Specialist with University of Maryland Extension.

This session will explore Maryland’s solar market, including current incentives, economic drivers, and emerging opportunities for homes, farms, and businesses. It is the first webinar in the Fall 2025 Solar Energy Webinar Series, which introduces key topics in solar energy for Maryland residents and professionals. Hosted by Drew Schiavone, Energy Specialist with University of Maryland Extension.

Join us for the 2025 Mary Shorb Lecture in Nutrition given by Dr. Leena Hilakivi-Clarke. The lecture will be on gut dysbiosis as a mediator of increased breast cancer in female offspring born to obese mothers.

The Mary Shorb Lecture in Nutrition is a jointly hosted event by the Department of Nutrition and Food Science and the Department of Animal and Avian Sciences. Over 47 esteemed speakers have presented since its start in 1970.

The 2025 Mary Shorb Lecturer is Dr. Leena Hilakivi-Clarke. She is a professor and assistant director for Faculty Affairs at the Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota. Hilakivi-Clarke's current research interests focus on women's health, including studying interactions among exosome, gut microbiome, and breast cancer. She has published over 180 scientific papers and trained nearly 90 graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty in her laboratory.

There will be a reception from 1:45 to 2:45 following the lecture.

The Master of Extension Education features a multi-disciplinary program with core courses focused on principles of Extension in needs assessment, program development, evaluation, and social science research methodology as well as a suite of supportive elective courses in a variety of Extension specialty areas. Graduates with Extension education experiences are prepared for dynamic careers in secondary and post-secondary education, non-profits, government, and leadership roles in enterprise. 

Please join us in our open house to know about our programs!

You're invited to join us for AGNR’s 7th annual Cornerstone event on Thursday, October 23 at The Adele H. Stamp Student Union—Center for Campus Life. 

We're excited to welcome keynote speaker, Sanjay K. Rai, secretary of the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC). 

In his role, Rai is responsible for statewide policies for Maryland's 14 public 4-year institutions, 16 community colleges, 32 private institutions, and more than 140 private career schools. His programming and partnerships have expanded educational access, improved student success, and reduced achievement gaps for all learners. He will deliver a talk on the use of hashtagAI to improve instruction and engagement with students. 

The event will also feature a free lunch and a student poster competition featuring the excellent work of our students. Guests may also register on-site the day of the event. 

Join the College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Alumni Network on Saturday, October 4 before the Washington vs. Maryland football game for food & fun on Family Weekend. Reconnect with fellow alums, enjoy tailgate eats, and get game-day ready AGNR-style. Don’t miss this chance to celebrate with your UMD family—see you there!

Come learn about the field of ag communications with AGNR alum, Katrina Stacey. She will discuss her career path in ag communications, provide insight into her current role, and offer advice for entering and progressing within the field.

A bit more about Katrina:

Katrina serves as Field to Market's Senior Manager of Communications and Marketing, driving strategic marketing and communications to build upon and enhance Field to Market's reputation as the voice of the agriculture value chain. Katrina comes to Field to Market from the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD), where she served as the organization's communications coordinator for almost three years. In this role, she developed and delivered communications among NACD's stakeholders, managed NACD's social media channels, and supported the execution of NACD meetings. She also served as the staff lead on a number of NACD's soil health projects, including soil health case study projects and a soil testing project. Katrina received a bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, in Environmental Science and Policy and concentrated her studies in agriculture.

Dining with Diabetes is an evidence-based, national Extension program for adults with type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes and their families that teaches healthy meal planning and other self-management skills to help control this disease. This VIRTUAL series will run Wednesdays in October & November from 6-8 PM.  Participants are encouraged to attend all 4 sessions to benefit from this program. 

Wednesdays: October 8, 15, 29, & Nov 5 from 6-8 PM

There will also be a 3 Month follow up session: Wednesday, February 4 from 6-8 PM

Dining with Diabetes is an evidence-based, national Extension program for adults with type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes and their families that teaches healthy meal planning and other self-management skills to help control this disease. Diet is an essential component of diabetes management along with physical activity, medication, and monitoring. Participants learn how to prepare healthy, well-balanced meals, incorporate physical activity into their lifestyle, and monitor their ‘numbers’.

The Dining with Diabetes curriculum has been reviewed and certified by the Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialists (ADCES) as meeting the 7 Self-Care Behaviors, which are essential for successful and effective diabetes self-management: Healthy Eating, Being Active, Monitoring, Taking Medication, Problem Solving, Healthy coping, and Reducing Risks.

This image courtesy of the Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialists (ADCES)
 

Dining with Diabetes complements and does not replace other diabetes education and management programs. It includes a series of four weekly, 2-hour sessions and a three-month follow up class. Each class offers a food demonstration and tasting, discussions regarding important information, recipes, and other resources to help manage diabetes.

You are encouraged to attend all the sessions to gain the benefits from this program.
Participants will learn:

• Menu planning
• Carbohydrate counting
• Portion control
• Label reading
• Healthy fats
• Importance of fiber in managing diabetes

*Note: Individual meal plans are not provided.

Who should attend the Dining with Diabetes program? The program is available to anyone, 18 years or older who is:

• at-risk for or currently has type 2 diabetes
• has pre-diabetes
• a family member or caregiver who provides support for someone with type 2 diabetes
• interested in learning more about managing and preventing type 2 diabetes                                                                                               

University programs, activities, and facilities are available to all without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, age, national origin, political affiliation, physical or mental disability, religion, protected veteran status, genetic information, personal appearance, or any other legally protected class.