Southern Utah University’s agriculture club will partner with the Utah Young Farmers and Ranchers program to explore agricultural innovations and practices across the state on March 17-20.
The Tour of Utah trip is sponsored by the Utah Farm Bureau to provide YF&R members opportunities to explore new or different farming and ranching practices and allows attendees to network within the industry.
This year the SUU ag club will be coordinating with the YF&R to allow SUU students to join in on the experience.
The trip will begin with a kick-off dinner in Salt Lake City on Wednesday followed the next day by a trip to Bryce Canyon National Park, where attendees will participate in two farm tours.
Friday will begin with an early morning excursion inside Bryce Canyon National Park and include a presentation by the local government and the American Farm Bureau YF&R committee members, a tour of Redmond Equine and a target shooting competition.
To finish up the trip, attendees will return to SLC on Saturday to participate in the Miracle Project, a food drive event hosted by the Farmers Feeding Utah Foundation.
Each year the SUU ag club plans a unique trip that allows students to grow their understanding of agricultural practices and provides them with experiences to learn from others within the industry.
The trips are planned and coordinated each year by the club’s presidency with guidance from agriculture advisors and professors. Past trips have taken the SUU ag students to states all across the western U.S., with the most recent trips exploring Colorado, California and Texas.
“The ag trip gives students the opportunity to view aspects of agriculture that are outside of their normal scope of the industry,” said Justin Jennings, a member of last year’s ag presidency and trip coordinators.
Attending the annual agriculture trip not only provides the students with the chance to extend their knowledge and experience, it also allows them the chance to earn upper division credit.
Students who wish to obtain credit for attending the trip must talk to an ag advisor to be approved. They must also participate in planning, implementing and evaluating the trip.
These students will then be invited to articulate their experiences and key aspects of their trip during a group presentation to the ag club members and students in the Agriculture Leadership and Agriculture Seminar classes.
The agriculture club meets every Tuesday at 7 p.m. in S.C. 114. To join or for more information about the club, contact the office by emailing agclubsuu@gmail.com.
More information about the YF&R and up-to-date information of the Tour of Utah stay trip can be found on their website and Facebook page.
Story and Photo by: Mikyla Bagley
outdoors@suunews.net
