Casey Branach. Photo by Texas A&M ANRP Program.
Patrick McMahon with Emmitt Smith in Washington, D.C. Submitted Photo by Patrick McMahon.
Michelle Wood at her desk working on a project. Submitted photo by Michelle Wood.
We're Leaders! Entomology Students Receive Experience of a Lifetime with Internship
Three students in the Department of Entomology received an educational experience they will never forget.
Casey Branach, Michelle Wood and Patrick McMahon received a firsthand account on how the nation's policy is developed as they participated in the Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy (ANRP) Internship Program.
The program allows students to intern for a semester during the fall, spring or summer in Washington, D.C. or in Austin when the state legislature is in session, to work with lawmakers or groups involved with policymaking.
These students were part of the Texas A&M Agricultural and Natural Resources Policy (ANRP) Internship program. The goal of the program is to introduce the student to the federal and state lawmaking and government processes.
Casey Branach, a Forensics and Investigative Sciences and entomology double major, heard about the program from Career Services during a class.
She spent this past spring semester interning with Congressman Ralph Hall in Washington, D.C. Some of the activities included meeting with astronauts concerning three missions, meeting with various members of Congress and leaders of interest groups and attending hearings and briefings.
Entomology major Patrick McMahon interned in the fall of 2009 in Washington with the minority staff of the House Committee on Agriculture. McMahon was involved in various agricultural/rural issues including food deserts and rural broadband.
McMahon was involved in several briefings with various members of Congress and participated in a conference call with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsak. He also met Emmitt Smith and visited with Congressman Michael McMahon of New York.
Entomology major Michelle Wood interned during fall of 2008 with the National Association for State Departments of Agriculture. She said the NASDA represents all fifty states and four US Territories’ agricultural departments to Congress and the various regulatory entities.
Some of the organizations that Wood worked with included the US Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, and Department of Defense. These agencies are actively involved with NASDA. In addition to governmental agencies, Wood worked with various private and commodity groups such as the Water Quality Institute and the Tomato Growers Association.
She remembers best the time she was at a meeting with constituents and someone introduced her as an employee and not as an intern. "It was a huge mental shift for me because that introduction alone gave me more responsibility and respect than I had before," she said.
"This experience is incredible," Wood said. " I have learned so many things like office etiquette, composure, and management, that teamwork and community is more important than gaining personal recognition, and that every action counts when making friends, business partners, or networking."
Branach enjoyed the internship and noted that the internship will be highlight of her college career.
"This is an experience I will never forget, and I love the person that it has made me become. I would have never been able to work on Capitol Hill or live in this amazing city without everyone that comprises the ANRP program," she said. "It has opened my eyes to so many new experiences."
For more information about the ANRP Internship Program, visit its website at http://agintern.tamu.edu.