Cristina Griffith & Marisa Laudadio & Jerry Arrieta

GA 4710

INTL Precision Agriculture

3/30/18

Final Project Assignment

Problem statement (40 pt): describe and introduce the problem you are trying to solve

It has come to our attention that while students at SENA-M are gaining a wonderful education in
the field of Agriculture through hands-on, transferable skills that prepare them for a career in
local agriculture, there is not much information provided to these students regarding
opportunities for continuing education or professional development in the field of agriculture
after graduation.

Additionally, through our personal experiences, we have realized that it is vital for MSU students
to leave the US and travel to another country. This raises one’s awareness of other opportunities
outside the US and opens one’s eyes to unique resources available in the US that may have
previously been taken for granted. Studying abroad changes the way one looks at the world and
helps put US agriculture production in a global perspective, which is important when working in
an increasingly globalized market.

If the SENA-M students are never informed about different opportunities besides what their
internships prepared them for, they could be missing out on life changing experiences. If the
MSU students never travel abroad and learn about opportunities in other countries, they may not
reach their full potential as global agricultural leaders. For these reasons, we would like to create
a week-long Agricultural Leadership and Professional Development Conference taught in
Colombia that facilitates cultural exchange between students at MSU and SENA-M.

Objectives (25pt): Justify your project goals

We have identified the following four objectives for this project:

1) Increase awareness among SENA-M students regarding continuing education

opportunities and professional development in the field of agriculture
 2) Build capacities among Colombian students for professional development in
agriculture

3) Increase awareness among MSU students about rural development in agriculture in

other countries and identify resources we have in the US that we can share with SENA-M
students

4) Increase collaboration between SENA-M and MSU

By creating this program, we will not only be able to send MSU students to Colombia, but also
introduce SENA-M students to the United States.

Timeline (10 pt): create the first draft of a project timeline

This project would take approximately one year to create and implement. It would begin with
finalizing the proposal and getting it approved. Then we would need to find sponsors to fund
students traveling between the countries, develop more specific components of the modules and
decide who would serve as guest lecturers, arrange monthly meetings between organizers at
MSU and SENA-M, promote this program and enroll qualified students in a pre-departure course
to prepare them for the conference and start practicing their language skills, and assign
pre-departure readings or research topics to the students. The project would culminate in the
week long conference in Colombia taught by the MSU students and the Colombian students’
visit to MSU.

Methods and sources (15 pt): How you will approach your problem? what are the main
tools from the class that will help you to solve the problem? what are the tools you will use
from your own experience to solve the problem? what else you need for your project to
become a reality?

This program would be divided into different modules per day and primarily be conducted
through student-led workshops and guest speakers. We can draw on our personal experience with
college and scholarship applications, agri-business training, the US Extensions service and 4-H,
and the SENA-M program and Colombian education system to create the workshop materials for
this conference. We will also rely on the knowledge we gained from this course when facilitating
relationships with sponsors in the US and organizations in Colombia.

Module/workshop topics could include: teaching SENA-M students how to apply for continuing
education in Colombia, why it is important, and how to compare and contrast the advantages and
disadvantages of gaining a university education; how to apply for funds through scholarships and
fellowships; how to travel to the United States and study at a university there (e.g. how to apply
to a university in the US, how to apply for a visa, what students need to know before traveling to
the US, what classes and programs are taught at different US universities, etc.) and what life in
the US/Mississippi looks like and has to offer; the difference between agriculture techniques and
soil types and water-management techniques in Mississippi and Colombia; international
agra-business and new job opportunities outside of Colombia or the US; and discussing the
cooperative and extension systems in the US and how they are similar and different from
systems in Colombia.

Another aspect of this course could include providing virtual training with virtual certificates in
PDF from SENA or MSU about programs or courses that MSU and SENA can offer in
agriculture, culture, ecology, business, etc.

In order to make this project a reality, Cristina and Marisa will work with officials at MSU from
various departments and colleges (e.g. the Political Science and Public Administration
Department, Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literature, College of Arts &
Sciences, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the International Study Abroad Office, the
Social Science Research Center, the Extension Service, and Mississippi Women in Agriculture)
to find sponsors for this project, provide institutional support, and gain instructions on how to go
about getting this program set up. Jerry will work with SENA-M officials to get support for this
project on the Colombian side and promote this project to students at SENA-M. He would also
help with researching what issues most need to be address through this conference so we can
target specific needs of SENA-M students. Since Gina and Sandra have experience with the
public education system in Colombia, they could help us create the “continuing education”
portion of this project.

Outline and references (10 pt): present an outline for your final submission and a possible
list of references that will help you justify the project development (at least 3 references)

1.) The SENA website can provide us with information about the different colleges and
institutional levels we will need to work with. It can also provide us with information on how
SENA as a whole can help fund their own agricultural students:

http://www.sena.edu.co/es-co/Paginas/default.aspx

2.) SENA-M students will be a major references regarding what topics need to be addressed
through this program. They will provide specific information about what they want taught, what
issues SENA-M does not teach them about, and what information about the US would be most
helpful for them to know.
3.) The MSU Extension website and various student organizations at MSU, such as Cristina’s
product marketing organization, can also be used as resources to help provide a model for us to
shape our program after:

http://extension.msstate.edu/

http://www.cals.msstate.edu/students/clubs.asp