CASNR Grads Pioneer Peace Corps Master's International Program
Shaped by a willingness to serve and a desire for international experience, two Dallas-area women, who just graduated from Texas Tech University last month, have been selected as academic pioneers of sorts. Erin Hoelting of Lone Oak and Jackie Forbus of Plano are the first in Texas to enter into the university's new Peace Corps Master's International Program within the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
Texas Tech University is the first school in Texas to offer the program.
After graduation, the two not only wanted to channel their efforts into helping others but also were interested in pursuing advanced degrees. Now, both are back in their Lubbock classrooms working on graduate degrees in Texas Tech's Department of Natural Resources Management. Once they finish three semesters of school work, they'll be off for a 27-month overseas assignment with the Peace Corps.
Getting Assignments
Hoelting said she doesn't know to what country she'll eventually be assigned, but when that time comes her preferences will be taken into consideration.
She majored in natural history and humanities at Texas Tech. Her interest in international programs and eventually the Peace Corps grew out of earlier coursework in Jamaica and Belize.
"I was able to focus on the culture and interacting with the environment there," she said. "That really sparked my interest."
Forbus, whose area of study in college was biology, said she always wanted to go into the Peace Corps.
"It's been a goal of mine since I was very young," Forbus said. "When I heard about this Master's International Program, I thought 'this is the perfect time; they're going to train me, give me a master's degree and send me to the Peace Corps. It's exactly what I wanted.'
"I want to have a hand in developing a nation and a developing people. So many of these things are bigger than myself."
Peace Corps Master's International students have the option of choosing courses at Texas Tech under a general heading of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, which includes courses from agricultural and applied economics, agricultural education and communications, animal and food sciences, landscape architecture, plant and soil sciences, and natural resources management. The 36-hour degree program includes six hours of credit for Peace Corps service.
In order to assist students interested in this program, the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR) and Texas Tech's Graduate School offer $6,000 scholarships to help offset tuition and other costs associated with the student's one year of coursework.
The Global Classroom
Globalization is important in agriculture today, and development of this program is a positive step for the college, said John Burns, dean of CASNR.
"Students who have international experience and know about a foreign culture are going to be heads and shoulders above many others," he said. "I'm really proud of these two young women who have accepted this challenge."
Coursework will center on a core area of natural resources management, along with some classes outside of the college such as geography and biology.
"Graduates today are going out into a globalized world," said Ambassador Tibor Nagy, vice provost for International Affairs. "Employers are going to be looking for exactly the type of resumes that these students are going to have. The important thing was finding fields of study that compliment the type of Peace Corps assignments students might have. The match here is just phenomenal."
According to Peace Corps officials, volunteers help farmers improve local diets and increase income through farming techniques consistent with environmental conservation.
Among the organization's agricultural initiatives are agroforestry, applied agriculture, farm management/agribusiness, and animal husbandry. Since 1987, Master's International has expanded to include partnerships at more than 50 universities throughout the United States.
Written by Norman Martin
For more information about Texas Tech's Peace Corps Master's International program, contact Richard Menard, study abroad counselor/international exchange coordinator, at (806) 742-3667.
Departmental News
- Agricultural & Applied Economics
- Agricultural Education & Communications
- Animal & Food Sciences
- Landscape Architecture
- Natural Resources Management
- Plant & Soil Science
- Veterinary Science
Press Room
Editor: Norman Martin
Maps: Where to Find It
Davis College NewsCenter
-
Address
P.O. Box 42123, Lubbock, Texas 79409-2123, Dean's Office Location:Goddard Building, Room 108 -
Phone
(806)742-2808 -
Email
kris.allen@ttu.edu