A man stands near a bucket in a field, holding a tube for collecting soil samples.
Extension Intern Keon Kiser collects soil samples at the OSU Extension Moro Station.
Photo credit: Jacob Powell

Hello readers of my second and final blog post of the summer of 2023! My name is Keon Kiser and I am a third-year OSU student studying environmental engineering. During my academic endeavors I have had the great privilege of working for the Wasco County OSU Extension office the past two summers. This blog post is a good opportunity to share my experiences with OSU Extension.

This past summer I’ve worked heavily with my supervisor, Lu Seapy, coworkers Bob M. and Susan M., and a fellow OSU intern, Theo Sandoz, on 4-H STEM summer camps. We worked together on organizing a variety of camps for youth that include hiking camps along the Columbia River, VEX robotics camps, Protobots, Drones and a Makey-Makey camp. In these camps we taught basic coding languages, physics of simple circuits, local biology, notebooking, and soldering skills. The variety of technical skills taught at these camps were a good application of skills I have learned in the past. But it was also a good learning experience, because I had to reach a certain level of mastery in order to teach each skill. For example, I have previous experience programming robots and creating engineering notebooks, but I had to practice my soldering skills as I had not soldered too much in the past. I had to constantly read up on local biology in order to teach the subject during the hiking camps. Also, I was given the task to independently lead a series of VEX Robotics and hiking camps. At the VEX camps I introduced the upcoming competition and focused on having the youth practice strategy, documentation, robot design and robot building. Then, at the series of 4-H hikes, I managed a group of youth and an assistant from The Dalles Parks and Recreation office. I contacted families and instructed campers in local biology.

Seven young people stand on a plateau with a river below and behind them.
Blejan, Evan, Christopher, Keon Kiser, Caleb, Nolan and Porter on a 4-H hike along the Rowena Plateau overlooking the Columbia River.
Photo credit: Stacey Ihrig

Aside from the 4-H STEM summer camps, I was able to work with Jacob Powell, a Sherman and Wasco County extension agent, on his wheat-crop research projects. The overall idea of the project was to study grain sizes and soil micronutrients like nitrogen and phosphate across various combinations of nitrogen levels and fertilizers to see if there were any significant differences in yield. During this time, I witnessed the importance of accounting for any possible variable that could affect the results. For example, Jacob and I did not see any real obvious differences in grain sizes across most of the treatments, which could imply that none of the treatments would be any better than another tested treatment. However, we had to take into account the weather, as it did not rain a lot over the summer. The crops probably did not have enough moisture to carry the nutrients up the wheat stocks. This was a great lesson for me as I intend to participate in a bioremediation research project back at OSU. Additionally, I was happy to see the information and results gathered and presented from the fire break trials I helped Jacob with the previous summer.

Overall, OSU Extension has provided me ample opportunity to hone technical skills (like soldering), to become a better team leader and teacher, and to experience contributing, in one way or another, in scientific research. I have had so much fun working with the youth and watching them learn and grow many new skills throughout the summer, and from year to year. Additionally, the staff at Wasco County are great people who truly live the OSU Extension mission of serving the community. Their friendliness made working fun and their focus challenged me to put forth my best effort. I would rate this experience as two thumbs up and a smiley ball 🙂. Thank you!

A lineup of people ready to start toy cars.
Kids built solar powered cars at the renewable energy summer camp at Columbia Gorge Community College.
Photo credit: Lu Seapy.

Hello, my name is Theo Sandoz, and I am excited to be back for my  second year as an intern with Oregon State University Extension Service in Wasco County.  I am a student at OSU studying nuclear engineering.  Returning to the Wasco office feels like I never left, and the office is still as busy as ever.  I am working alongside Keon Kiser who is also a returning intern for Wasco County.  Our biggest project for the summer is planning and helping to facilitate S.T.E.M. day camps in Wasco County.  There are other projects, especially those involving our county fair, that I am also very keen on doing.

First and foremost, we have our summer camps.  So far, I have helped put on many day camps, including Aerodrone Academy, Galactic Quest and Renewables.  The Areodrone camp had our campers learning how to program and fly small drones.  Throughout this two-day camp we challenged all the campers to fly through and around obstacles and land on specific landing pads while directly controlling the drone and while the drone moved autonomously.

Another great camp that we put on is called Galactic Quest.  The curriculum for this camp comes directly from national 4-H and was a blast.  The campers made telescopes and cypher wheels and we played a lot of the Astro Adventure board game (Think Catan Spacefarers).

The most recent camp was our Renewables camp.  In this two-day camp we spent the first day learning all about solar energy and then everyone built a small solar car and got to take it home.  The second day was all about wind energy.  With a few model turbines and some box fans we were able to turn the classroom into a wind tunnel and teach kids about turbine blade design and its effect on the power that wind turbines produce.  The camps are incredibly fulfilling to put on as many of the campers get very invested in what we are teaching and bring their wild imagination to these fun events.

As August is fast approaching it is time to begin prepping for the Wasco County Fair and  Rodeo.  The Wasco County Fair runs Aug. 17-20 this year.  This is my first year since 2012 that I have not participated in 4-H as a member.  I still want to be as helpful as possible for those that are in 4-H and help put on an absolutely rocking fair and continue to do so for years to come.  Because of my position as an intern, I have unique access to planning and operating certain events at the fair.  I am most excited to work with Leah Lowe, Wasco County Extension 4-H program coordinator, on a new Livestock and Poultry Skill-a-Thon for the 2023 Fair.  This is something that we started hosting last year and we plan to expand on last year’s vision and make the Skill-a-Thon a fully fledged event that can continue to be something 4-H members in Wasco County look forward to in years to come.

For the next month there are many more projects and camps that I cannot wait to tackle!

A man sits in front of two computer monitors with swirling blue images.
Swar Patel sits ready to help and learn.
Photo credit: Akash Kallem

Greetings, readers! I am Swar Patel, a passionate computer science graduate student, and I am thrilled to share my internship experience with the OSU Extension Service. In this blog, I will take you through the early stages of my journey, highlighting the invaluable lessons I have already learned and the exciting prospects that lie ahead.

Within the Extension Service, I have been entrusted with a crucial role in shaping the evaluation process of nationwide youth-based programming. Leveraging the powerful capabilities of Salesforce CRM, I am working alongside a team to design and develop tools and resources that will facilitate efficient program evaluation. By collaborating with project stakeholders, I aim to identify their business needs and translate them into technical solutions that align with our overarching objectives.

My supervisors, Lucas Turpin and Mark Kindred, have been exceptional mentors, providing invaluable guidance throughout my internship journey. Their expertise and experience have been instrumental in shaping my understanding of project management and technical problem-solving. Under their wings, I have had the opportunity to draft project management documents, assist in designing discussion activities during stakeholder meetings, and produce flow diagrams. Their support has enhanced not only my technical skills but also my ability to effectively communicate and collaborate within a professional setting.

Coming from a computer science background, my academic pursuits have provided me with a solid theoretical foundation. However, my internship at Extension Service has given me the chance to apply this knowledge in a practical and meaningful way. By actively participating in the project life cycle, I have gained invaluable hands-on experience in identifying technical solutions that align with stakeholder needs. This practical application of my skills has allowed me to witness first-hand the impact of technology in streamlining evaluation processes and improving youth-based programming.

One of the unique aspects of my internship is the ever-evolving nature of the deadlines. Determined on a rolling basis, these deadlines keep us on our toes, adapting and adjusting to the outcomes of stakeholder meetings. This dynamic environment has instilled in me the importance of effective time management and the ability to prioritize tasks based on evolving project requirements. Collaborating with my managers, stakeholders, and fellow interns, we work together to ensure that our deliverables meet the project’s objectives within the designated timeframes.

Although my internship is still ongoing, the growth I have experienced in this short period is remarkable. This opportunity has not only strengthened my technical skills but has also nurtured crucial soft skills such as effective communication, teamwork, and adaptability. Working alongside seasoned professionals has exposed me to industry best practices and methodologies, expanding my horizons and deepening my understanding of technology’s applications in solving real-world challenges.

As I continue my internship at Extension Service, I eagerly anticipate further growth and learning opportunities. With the guidance of my mentors, I aim to refine my technical skills and contribute more substantially to the evaluation process. Each day brings new challenges, but I am determined to embrace them wholeheartedly, knowing that they will shape my future endeavors in the field of computer science. I am grateful for this internship opportunity and confident that the knowledge and experiences I gain will lay a strong foundation for my professional career.

In conclusion, my internship at Extension Service has been a transformative journey thus far. Working with Salesforce CRM to empower the evaluation of youth-based programming has opened my eyes to the profound impact of technology in the education sector. The guidance and mentorship provided by Lucas Turpin and Mark Kindred have been invaluable, fostering both personal and professional growth. As I continue to learn and grow, I am excited to confront new challenges and contribute to the success of the organization.

Thank you for joining me on this exciting adventure and stay tuned for more updates as I navigate the world of computer science during my internship at Extension Service!

A young man sits in front of an orange wall with OSU Extension Service Wasco County written on it. He is holding up nature journals.
Keon Kiser at home in the Wasco County office of OSU Extension Service.
Photo credit Chelsie Gibson.

Welcome to my first blog post for the summer of 2023! I am Keon Kiser and I have just completed my second year studying environmental engineering at Oregon State University. If you are an avid reader of OSU’s intern blogs, then you may recognize me because I am returning for my second year as an OSU Extension Service intern in The Dalles, Wasco County. Once again I will be working alongside Lu Seapy, my supervisor, and the other interns in the 4-H STEM department helping to plan and manage STEM summer camps and assisting Jacob Powell, a wheat crop researcher, with his wheat-nitrogen absorption research.

As of this writing, I am beginning my third week of work and already I have helped manage the Aerial Robotics Camp, where we have taught youth basic safety, programming and controller drone skills. Coming up, I will be very busy leading a VEX IQ Workshop to help middle-schoolers prepare for the upcoming VEX IQ Competition, co-leading 4-H hikes along the Columbia River Gorge, managing a Protobot Camp to teach youth how to solder electronics, and assisting with many other STEM camps throughout the summer.

I returned to this internship for a few reasons. First, it was a ton of fun to work with my colleagues to create learning opportunities for youth in the STEM field and to watch them grow in technical skills and excitement for STEM and learning in general. Secondly, I get to be around a familiar community and I can continue to support my community by providing fun and new experiences for the youth. Finally, I am put in situations where I am challenged to improve many skills, like managing a workflow, leading conversations and cooperating with individuals.

To wrap up, I am very grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given to work with such great colleagues and community. The office mentality at the Wasco County OSU Extension Service is one where everyone has the same goal in providing the best learning opportunities as we possibly can for our community. Working for Extension not only has given me a greater appreciation and drive for community service, but it has also prepared me with skills and confidence for taking leadership roles in my future endeavors as a student at OSU and as an engineer in my career.

Pulling up to the school building after a fairly long drive I look around and see nothing really all that remarkable. My mom has been talking about sending me and my sister Nadine to this science day camp for about a week now. The car slows down and eventually comes to a stop. My mom turns to me and my sister who are in the back seat and says “Here you are! Enjoy your first day at Hydromania tell me all about it when you get home” She gives us both a kiss on the head and sends us off into the school. At the time I had no real idea about what Hydromania was, so I was very excited to start going every day. However, I was soon disappointed due to how un-engaging most the lessons were. Fast forwarding to today and I have to make a lesson myself, I know I can’t be that boring as well.

Hydromania as I came to learn was a science camp where kids like me would go and learn about different topics in science. My year that I was there I learned about all sorts of things. From lightbulbs to how the McNary Dam works. However, there was one crucial issue with Hydromania for me. It was boring. Really, really boring. Most of the way those topics were explained were in ways that just didn’t interest children. I say this only because it gives context to how I approached my lesson for Hydromania as an OSU Extension intern this summer in Umatilla County. I was determined to make it at least somewhat fun and engaging.

A young man gives an outdoor demonstration while kids watch.
Joeseph Ferguson engages students at Hydromania.

To start I had to find something that would work for a short presentation. Learning from my past experience I knew I had to do something that would be engaging and hopefully interesting to learn about. This was way more difficult than expected. I would spend hours and hours finding a lesson idea writing a plan just to bore myself to sleep with it. I was beginning to worry that I just wouldn’t be able to make any lesson I could teach here fun or interesting. My only real goal here is to teach a subject in an engaging way and at this point it felt like I was failing at that.

Eventually I settled on a presentation idea just to make it fun. I had to engage the kids. So began making the final outline of the plan. I would be teaching them how to separate and identify the three different layers of soil. I would have a jar, a cup of soil and a pitcher of water along with two others already separated jars of soil. I would take time to explain the different layers and what you should look for in healthy soil then the fun part would come. One kid would put soil in the jar while another pours the water and the third will shake the jar for a minute. It’s fun to do so the kids would be engaged.

After all that preparation the day finally came, Hydromania. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. Before giving the lesson I was thinking things like, ‘What if I forget things or don’t know what to say?” “What if they ask questions and I don’t know the answers?” Anyway, I began the lesson, and it went well! The kids loved it! They were laughing and having a great time. I hope that helps them remember some of the cool information they learned.

Now that Hydromania has passed, and I won’t be likely to teach it again I had to stop and think about if I achieved my goal. I most definitely did. Getting kids to laugh and have fun with science is something that can be insanely difficult. I know I achieved it. That’s something I’ll always keep in mind – it’s not enough to just know information when it comes to teaching, you also must teach it and show it can be fun.

Hi, I am Perla Gutierrez, and I am on my last two weeks of my summer internship in Tillamook County. I have been a part of a lot of different projects with Open Campus/Juntos throughout this summer, including June Dairy Parade, Family Nights and Juntos Afuera. The whole summer I was working closely with high school Spanish-speaking students and their families, providing a safe environment with activities across Tillamook County.  

Perla Gutierrez (standing) leads an activity with students.

 The Juntos Afuera summer program for high school students included teaching them how to garden, go hiking on several trails, exploring sea life, learning about ancient plants, and kayaking, which was all the students’ favorite, including mine. Each week was focused on something different so I had a different activity that I had to lead, including painting, nature journaling and games to get to know everyone. On the days in which there was no camp, I was preparing for the following week with all the activities and creating the lesson plan for how the day would go. Sometimes that included buying some things at the store to be ready or planning our lesson plans several times until they were perfect. While leading each day in camp I got to know each student and create a bond with all of them.  

We also created events for the whole family to enjoy a day of learning and having fun with other families in the county. One was at Hydrangea Ranch in Tillamook County, where everyone was welcome. We had live music, food, games and some activities involving what we have done in Juntos Afuera this summer. In about a week, we have our second Family Day on the beach. There will be live music and entertainment, with the main event being an Ocean Blessing Ceremony. The planning behind each Family Night/Day is hard because we try to provide helpful resources for the families but also have to accommodate everyone involved in these events. We are about a week away from our event and we are still figuring out some logistics for this day to be perfect. Family Nights are created to show families that there are resources and people that want to help each student reach their goals, and that they can still celebrate and be proud of their culture. 

A group of 13 people hold potted plants
Showing off healthy plants and decorated pots at Juntos Afuera.

With my internship coming to an end, I have my final projects I am helping with, one of those is a STEM Camp. This camp is for incoming eighth-graders, in which will be working in an area I am not familiar with so it will be a learning experience. This internship has been an amazing and challenging opportunity, working with students close to my age, learning how to create a fun environment for them but also remember what we want them to get out of the whole program. I know I have had to think about certain topics in a different mindset which I know will influence my decisions in the future and I am grateful for everything this experience has taught me.

 

Allow me to reintroduce myself, I am Keon Cohl Kiser, a sophomore at Oregon State University working as an intern at the OSU Extension Office in Wasco County. I began my summer internship around June 22nd, expecting to grow professional and people skills in order to obtain work experience and build my resume.

I am supervised by Lu Seapy in the Extension 4-H program, which, among other things, builds healthy communal and familial relationships through fun and educational camps for elementary and middle school kids. I was able to develop my professional and people skills by building new summer camps out of nothing, which includes the curriculum and the overall structure of each camp. The camps that I worked with involved a STEM focus. They included the technological side of building and programming robots and microcomputers and the scientific and educational side of raising awareness of what is considered recyclable and teaching about the local biology of the Columbia River Gorge.

Keon Kiser (middle left) at hiking camp at Catherine Creek Recreation Area.

As I operated these camps, I was able to see what it was like being a leader in terms of organization and maintaining control over an intense or chaotic situation. You can easily lose control when 22 kids all are working on a hands-on project – all at different paces. Unfortunately in some case the kids didn’t make as much progress as we had hoped on their creations and education.

Also, I will have the fortunate opportunity to work with Jacob Powell, Extension crops and livestock faculty in Wasco and Sherman counties. With Jacob I will be assisting in conducting research on forage kochia to study its resistance to fire in very dry environments. This is a great opportunity since not many undergraduate students can say they assisted in a research project, and I highly enjoy being on the field and learning new concepts.

Gladly, my internship was not like what you may see on TV, where the intern is tasked with only making coffee and walking around with papers. I was immediately challenged in doing things I have had little to no experience participating in like teaching and structuring/creating a curriculum on a consistent basis. Out of this internship I was able to get what I initially wanted out of it: Developing professional and people skills, being challenged, getting to know new people and having tons of fun.

I am blessed to have a job in which it doesn’t feel like a job, except when waking up early in the morning to make it on time, I was able to apply the 4-H mission by building relationship and inspiration within the Wasco County youth, and in the process inspiring myself to continue to excel with my own passions within and outside the STEM field.

Theo Sandoz

Hello everyone, my name is Theo Sandoz. I just graduated The Dalles High School, and I am headed to OSU as a freshman in the fall. Through OSU Extension 4-H and FFA for the past nine years I have raised and shown beef and swine projects, done countless presentations and created enough projects to fill a treasure chest full of amazing stuff.  I was told about the OSU Extension internship program through Lu Seapy, 4-H youth development STEM educator in Wasco County. Lu was my robotics coach at the time. I started about three weeks ago and decided that this summer was for me to learn a little bit about everything.

Lu, who will be supervising me this summer, and I have known each other for a long time. She has been teaching science, technology, math and engineering (STEM) camps since I was in middle school. Now it is my job to help her plan and teach these camps as well as other staff here at Wasco Extension. One of my biggest undertakings is migrant education twice a week. We are teaching four STEM classes a day to the children of migrant workers in The Dalles starting at 6 a.m. This happens on the days that our summer camps do not conflict. This week we also have the Amazing Race, Garden Art, VEX IQ Robotics and many other camps.

I have taken on this Internship on top of my job at our local movie theater and working on our farm. This summer I decided that I was going to use all my available time to work as it is the last time before I must start paying for college. The internship program really does mean a lot to me because I have grown up in 4-H and now I am able to give back to 4-H through Extension as well as participating in my last year. Everyone here at the office is amazing to work with and I am glad that I agreed to come onboard!

Keon Cohl Kiser

Hello there! I am Keon Cohl Kiser, a freshly cooked college freshman going into my second year at Oregon State University. I am studying to be an environmental engineer with honors, with a hope to provide new solutions and/or sustainable alternatives for waste treatment through the study of organic decay. For me to be ready to take those steps I wanted to take an internship position to familiarize myself with the working environment and communal relationships.

I found this opportunity at the OSU Extension office in The Dalles with the Extension 4-H program, whose mission is to provide meaningful opportunities for all youths and adults to work together to create sustainable community change. I experienced a change as a high school student participating in the VEX Robotics Program, organized by Lu Seapy, 4-H STEM educator in Wasco County.

Through 4-H I was introduced into STEM and I was able to find a calling in my life to help improve the health of our planet and our communities, leading me into the engineering field. This is something that I hope I can give back to youths by introducing them to a multitude of topics like robotics and biology (as a few examples) to provide a groundwork for whatever path they are called to be on.

Not only will I build communal relationships and communication skills, I will also be put into an environment where I am charged with tasks to be done by deadlines. This opportunity provides new habits of scheduling, planning and executive decision-making, when needed.

Being at 4-H I can be a part of the lives of many people within my community, striving to enthrall youths in a variety of ways to encourage them to push themselves to grow in their future careers and as people. Similarly, I will grow with this experience communally and technically to establish the groundwork for my future.