TUCKER, Ga. — The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association’s Foundation is awarding Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, and Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, N.C. $7,000 each to help with student recruitment. These two grants are part of the foundation’s approved $331,292 they are awarding to six other U.S. universities with Poultry Science Departments and 21 other institutions with industry-related programs, USPOULTRY stated in its announcement.
SHSU’s School of Agricultural Sciences offers seven bachelor of science degree programs, including animal science, and is one of the university’s largest schools with more than 900 undergraduate and graduate students. As a part of the animal science undergraduate curriculum, students can take a poultry science course designed to introduce them to the poultry industry, which has seen a steady increase in enrollment, USPOULTRY noted.
The university boosts poultry education by teaching five sections of poultry processing every year to more than 100 students, with poultry processing being a core learning unit within the meat science course, USPOULTRY added. Hands-on learning is also a big part of SHSU’s program, as the university is the host of the Area IX Poultry Judging Contest and has been for more than 25 years.
The grant will be used to help student recruitment, as well as other outreach initiatives. It will also go toward secondary education outreach, including a campus visitation event that welcomes prospective students and families to the university campus, and youth outreach, which provides opportunities for Texas 4-H and FFA members, USPOULTRY said.
Any additional funds will go towards extensive career and education promotion to keep students engaged and interested in poultry science and related fields, the foundation added.
In North Carolina, Wilkes Community College is a two-year institution. Its grant will go toward its associate in applied science programs, including poultry management, animal science technology, and agribusiness technology. All these programs have poultry-focused coursework and aim to prepare students for careers in the industry, USPOULTRY said.
As with SHSU, the funds will be used to strengthen outreach. For Wilkes, that will include high school visits, targeted recruitment initiatives for seniors and adult learners, and expanded advertising through social media, USPOULTRY added.
Additionally, the school will use a portion of the grant to elevate educational opportunities for the youth, including the college’s annual Youth Poultry Workshop. The workshop will provide kids with hands-on learning experiences, exposing them to the poultry industry early and sparking their interest.
USPOULTRY also notes that it’s dedicated to improving the workforce development of the poultry industry, and these grants are a vital part of that commitment.
