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K-State Today

April 17, 2013

Award-winning agriculturalists: Students earn photography, public speaking awards

Submitted by Communications and Marketing

Student members of Kansas State University Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences, or MANRRS, chapter received awards at the national society's recent 28th annual Career Fair and Training Conference in Sacramento, Calif.

Award winners include:

Lonell Brown, senior in animal sciences and industry with an emphasis in biotechnology, Kansas City, Kan., received first place in the photo contest; Simone Holliday, sophomore in animal sciences and industry and chapter president, Kansas City, Mo., received second place in the photo contest; and Taneysha Howard, junior in agricultural communications and journalism, St. Louis, Mo., received second place in the public speaking contest.

Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences is a national society that welcomes people from all racial and ethnic groups to become members and participate in agricultural, natural resources and related sciences careers.

"This was an exciting time for our chapter," said Zelia Wiley, assistant dean and director of the College of Agriculture's diversity programs office and chapter adviser. "We took the largest student delegation to the West Coast, and we were truly an example of the MANRRS motto, 'Changing the face of agriculture by linking hands around the world.'"

Celebrating its 10-year anniversary at Kansas State University, the chapter recently finished MANRRS week on with members participating in a dodgeball tournament hosted by Sigma Alpha to raise money for charity.

"Events were very beneficial to chapter members and the K-State campus to make others aware of who we are and what we do," said Daja Menefee, a member of the society and a master's student in agricultural economics.

The chapter's goal is to provide student members -- junior high school through doctoral programs -- with the support needed to become productive citizens by engaging them in leadership development activities, educational opportunities and job readiness training, and by facilitating internship placement and permanent employment.

"The K-State chapter would like to thank our corporate sponsors, CHS Inc., Cargill Inc. and John Deere Co., who made our trip to the national conference a reality," Wiley said. "Also, thanks to our local sponsors, the College of Agriculture's academic and diversity programs offices."