Phillip Seaborn, assistant director of CANR Undergraduate Diversity, said it was imperative to recruit more young students for an industry that could be ravaged by climate change and economic shifts in the future.

“Within the next 30 to 40 years we can expect unprecedented challenges related to agriculture and natural resources,” Seaborn said in a press release. “As solutions are developed, it is critical that teams are representative of the populations being served.”

The goal of the program is to give students hands-on experiences in forestry or other environmental disciplines and recruit them to pursue the same discipline in college.

The funds impact MSU’s Higher Education Multicultural Scholars Program, or MSP, a program authorized under the federal Agricultural Act of 2014. The Obama-era program, known as the Farm Bill, allows MSP money to “expand agricultural professional development opportunities along with (increasing) the number, quality and diversity of qualified graduates” entering the workforce. 

The first phase of the grant started in summer 2018. A chunk of the money went into MSU’s Multicultural Apprenticeship Program, or MAP. 

MAP is a four-week summer program held at MSU. In July and August 2018, it allowed five high school students pursuing environmental science and forestry disciplines to get career advice from MSU faculty members. 

MSP Project Director Justin Kunkle said the Department of Forestry and CANR took a “really collaborative approach” with the program. 

“The field of forestry is new to a lot of students, but in particular students that grow up in urban areas,” Kunkle said. “Kind of the first step in the grant program was to provide the students with exposure in an immersive experience.”

Faculty, post-docs and graduate students worked with high school students on business days. Their work included studies in botany, soil science, how to engage with a community and data analysis. In their down time, MAP students attended seminars, went on field trips and were given lessons in SAT preparation, financial stability and and how to apply for financial aid. 

Students were also paired with faculty advisers to work on their own research projects.. 

“Some of this material might’ve been out of their comfort zone,” Kunkle said. “Most of our students actually came from the city of Detroit, so being out in the forest and being exposed to all these new things was an eye-opening and challenging experience for them.”

But diversifying their industries is the whole point of the programs, Kunkle and Seaborn said. The USDA grant enables those opportunities. 

“Programs and opportunities such as MAP and MSP are excellent ways to begin developing diverse talent today to tackle the problems of tomorrow,” Seaborn said.

Kunkle said another key effort will be to pursue and recruit students to MSU in fall 2019. Those that attend the summer programs and enroll at MSU for natural sciences-based careers will receive what the bulk of the grant goes for: scholarships and in-state tuition paid off. 

“The big part of the grant funds — they actually cover scholarships for the students," Kunkle said.