Progress 09/15/07 to 09/14/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Karla met with the SWC curriculum regularly and got the new program and curriculum approved for the General Food and Agricultural Associate Degree program established. There were three degrees offered in the Science Program before the new program was developed those were; Interdisciplinary Environmental Science, Natural Science and Natural Science/Life Science. At the time there were seven students between the three degrees offered. Between the three degrees offered there was only the difference of one class requirement. There was a change and two of the programs were archived and the Interdisciplinary Environmental degree was kept. SWC offered the first two classes in degree program in spring semester 08', which are NS 213 Soils and NS 225 Environmental Science. In the fall semester 09' SWC offered the first nutrition class since 2001 called Food and People. There were two other nutrition courses offered as electives for this degree and a course developed due to interest in the type of course. The new classes developed for the General Agriculture and Food Science are; Insect Biology, Ornithology, and Range Plant Identification.SWC has created brochures for the General Agriculture and Food Science Program as a tool for recruitment. Two adjunct faculty members were hired to instruct the Introduction to Soils and Ornithology courses. Scholarships were offered to students in the new degree program. The development of the outdoor lab is in progress and the community has noticed the changes to the scenery on the SWC campus. There has been a few years growth and every year we add to the classrooms to make the restoration a functional teaching tool. Students were hired to do some of the work on the outdoor clasrooms. Four Dakota elders assisted with many language and cultural activities for the science department since the program has started. The elders have helped to name all the plants, tree and shrubs for the outdoor classroom as well as science terms. PARTICIPANTS: Karla Witt was the project director and coordinated the activities for the project. Sharon Espland, adjunct instructor for Traditiona Plants and Herbs. Javier Mollinedo, adjunct instructor for Introduction to Soils. Rose Mary Gutierrez, adjunct instructor for Insect Biology. The following are elders and community members with knowledge in the Dakota language and culture; David Seaboy, Wayne Eastman, Delbert Pumpkinseed, Orsen Bernard, Yvonne Wynde, Mary Lou Wynde, Dedria Keeble, Phyllis Roberts and Gabrielle Tata Yu Skaska. The following were student grounds keepers. These students worked on the outdoor classroom. They planted and maintained many of the plants, tree, and shrubs. They are: Steve Farmer, Brendon Barker, Natasha Roozen, Desirae Ortley, Mniyata Hill, Daniel Lovato, Michel Cloud, Bryan Twilling, Dave Genia, Brandi Genia, Paula McBride, Alicia Gangone, Robert White Thunder, Travis Paquette and Wahca Ackerman. TARGET AUDIENCES: For the Associate Degree program, our target audience was local high school and nontraditional students who were interested in careers that required a general agricultural background. We also expected to have individuals enroll in specific classes that would benefit them with personal goals like learning about native plants, getting an agriculture-related loan or just enhancing their own skills and knowledge base. The overall impact of this program was to offer more hands-on classes that teach students about local native plants, traditional methods of food preservation and modern soil and conservation practices. The restoration of native plants to the SWC campus serves as a model for other landowners who can see how it works and appreciate the benefits that come with it. The long range plan of this program builds on a program already in place in the SWC Science Department. The Circle of Life is a program that involves Dakota people of all ages in science and this program significantly strengthens the college-age component, while including Dakota elders. In addition, there is a comprehensive campus improvement plan that has been helping the College to beautify and enhance the campus with exterior lighting, improved drainage and fixing and expanding the sidewalks. In addition, there is a landscaping component that this program will tie into, turning our planned walking path into an outdoor classroom, for example. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: We did have to applied and recieved a no cost extension for the project as we felt our goals and objectives needed more time.
Impacts
The General Agriculture and Food Science program was established and had one student graduate from the new program within two years. Our degree majors had increased by one hundred percent in the beginning of the program. We still have students that are in the program that we hope to graduate in the near future. The General Food and Agriculture Science degree program is an on-going process and has gotten off to a great start with SWC promoting all science programs at three local schools. SWC anticipates an increase of students in the General Agriculture and Food Science in the future as progress of the outdoor classrooms and recruitment in the community continues. There has been a heightened awareness already as community members are excited about the activities in progress. The overall impact of this program will be to offer more hands-on classes that teach students about local native plants, traditional methods of food preservation and modern soil and conservation practices. Local people will have more job and career opportunities in science and agriculturally related fields. The restoration of native plants to the SWC campus will serve as a model for other landowners who can see how it works and appreciate the benefits that come with it. Students were offered scholarships and I believe that helped to increase students majoring in the program. Students were also given the opportunity to work as grounds keepers for the restoration project which has helped to increase their knowledge in the overall restoration process. This also served as a retention tools as students who worked for the summer returned for school in the fall. The Dakota elders that meet with Karla to translate science terms and the plants, trees and shrubs for the restoration have been approached by students and faculty to help them with various activities. It has been a learning experience to work with the elders. The Dakota culture and language is becoming interesting to students as it is incorporated into the courses and everyday life at SWC.
Publications
- There are no publications at this time. 2013
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