Wanna know what the IAA is up to? Check out the Summer 2011 /INAG News/ newsletter. Can't get enough of /INAG News/? Read our Winter 2011 and our Summer 2010 editions.

This September, Dr. Cheng-i Wei, the Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, appointed Glori Hyman as the Director of the Institute of Applied Agriculture. Hyman has served as an IAA instructor for the past 20 years and as the Acting Director for four years. Her instruction of Written Communications, Oral Communications and Professional Development courses has prepared hundreds of IAA students for successful careers in agricultural industries. Glori is the face of the IAA and is dedicated to recruiting prospective students to the Institute. Additionally, she secured a $25,000 grant from the Maryland State Department of Education to host the Curriculum for Agricultural Science and Education (CASE) Institute this past July for secondary education teachers. To read Dr. Wei's announcement, please click here. The IAA congratulates Glori on this outstanding achievement.

The Institute of Applied Agriculture hosted 23 secondary education teachers at the University of Maryland, College Park this summer for the CASE Institute. Read this article to learn more about the two week workshop.

This summer, students and staff at the IAA collaborated with Great Kids Farm in Catonsville, Md., to create an insect collection for Baltimore City school students. Read about the project here.

IAA Instructor Ken Ingram served as an AGNR100 instructor for AgDiscovery, a three-week educational program that introduces high school students to a variety of agricultural careers and opportunities. Click here to learn more!

Save the date: Tuesday, January 10, 2012, for our Alumni Breakfast. This will be held in conjunction with the Maryland Turfgrass Conference, January 9-10 at the Stamp Student Union. The breakfast will be 7-8:30am on Re-certification Day. More information will be sent out in September. Spread the news to other alumni! Questions? Contact Dr. Mathias.

The Professional Grounds Management Society at the University of Maryland, College Park was recently awarded a $1000 grant from the CHS Foundation. The grant will support the chapter’s fundraising efforts to attend the GIE+Expo in Louisville, Kentucky this October.

The UMD PGMS was established in 2010 and is the society’s first student chapter. The CHS Foundation, a giving entity of CHS Inc., supports agricultural enterprises and education.

The GIE+Expo is a national trade association meeting where participants can see demos, test new technology, and learn about grounds management.

The IAA congratulates the UMD PGMS on this outstanding achievement.

The university’s Apiary building has been refurbished and reopened as the Arboretum Outreach Center, newly designed to educate the community about the university’s tree inventory and botanical offerings. IAA alumna Carin Celebuski serves as the Coordinator of Volunteers for the arboretum and is involved in the center’s Tree Walks and Talks. In 2010, Carin, a general ornamental horticulture student, was recognized as the IAA’s Outstanding Student.

Carin is featured in a Diamondback article about the new center. Check out the story here

IAA Sustainable Ag student Deb Dramby is interning as the Farm Manager at the University's new teaching garden. Deb was recently featured on Maryland Newsline Summer, a news program produced by Philip Merrill College of Journalism students for UMTV. Many crops being harvested this summer sprouted in the University Greenhouse after IAA students in Ken Ingram's Greenhouse and Production Management course planted them. Check out the video here!

IAA Instructor Roy Walls was one of five Maryland State educators to convene at the National Agriscience Integration Institute (NAII), June 26 – 30, in Des Moines, Iowa. Fewer than 12 state teams are chosen to attend the Institute each summer. Participants shared best-practices, strategies and techniques in further integrating agriscience into a student’s education. The IAA congratulates Roy on this exciting opportunity.

The IAA Scholarships page has been recently updated. Take advantage of this opportunity to fund your education! Click here to see the list.

Mooooooove over Elvis and make way for the cow. This year's Shields Memorial Tournament made a return visit to Twin Shields Golf Club on Friday, May 13, 2011. Over 145 golfers and 25 sponsors participated in this successful fund raising event for the IAA Turf program, bringing in $14,000 to support scholarships, student travel, and other program enhancement initiatives. Learn more >>

Maryland was the center of the golf universe in June with two professional tournaments. Both events had record breaking performances by the champions. As usual, IAA faculty, students and alumni were heavily involved and a big part of the success of each event. Kevin Mathias at the Melwood Open (Picture on right)

On June 2-5 the Melwood Prince George's County Open returned to the University of Maryland golf course. Superintendent George Long and current IAA student Allen Turner had the course in great shape despite the season's first heat wave. Several IAA alumni volunteered during the week. The event was won by Steve Wheatcroft with a record score of 66-60-65-64 totaling 255, 29 strokes under par, the lowest four-round total in the 20-year history of the Nationwide Tour.

(Above) IAA alumni and faculty at the US Open.  L to R: Justin Bishop, Ken Ingram, Chappy Chapman, Kevin Mathias, Mike Owens, Tom Turi, Ricardo Quijada, Lucas Black.

June 16-19 Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, MD, hosted the US Open. Again, IAA alumni and faculty were among the 120 volunteers from around the world. Two IAA alumni, Tom Turi and Ricardo Quijada are on the staff at Congressional. Two recent IAA/Congressional interns Mike Owens and Adam Schilpp returned to volunteer. Kevin Mathias, Ken Ingram, Lucas Black, Justin Bishop, and Ryland Chapman all worked the 4-8 a.m. and 4-8 p.m. shifts. Several other IAA alumni with Turf Equipment and Supply Co. were involved: Doug Ballew, Doug Fleming , Bill Neus, Brian Pardoe, and Andy Donelson. Some of the week's highlights included a visit from the GCSAA Board of Directors on Wednesday morning and photo opportunities with the US Open trophy (before its trip to Ireland) Wednesday afternoon, a surprise visit from the 1964 US Open champion Ken Venturi Thursday afternoon, and a visit and thank you from USGA Executive Director Mike Davis on Friday.

Ken Ingram, IAA's Landscape and Ornamental Horticulture Advisor and Lecturer, received the NACTA Teaching Award of Merit Certificate for 2011. Ingram joined the IAA faculty in 2008 and has taught a variety of courses, including Landscape Design, Plant Science, Arboriculture, and Personnel Management. He initiated and advises the student chapter of the Professional Grounds Management Society, and works diligently with the new teaching garden. "He's constantly looking for new projects, finding jobs for students, networking with alumni, and coming up with creative ideas," says IAA Acting Director Glori Hyman. "Anyone who knows Ken, knows it's hard to keep him stationary, and our students benefit from his high energy. He is well deserving of this recognition." Ingram was honored at the IAA's pre-graduation celebration in May.

After nearly 10 years with the IAA, Equine Advisor Erin Pittman has decided to leave the University of Maryland to spend more time with her twin boys, help on the farm and pursue new equine interests. Read more here.

The Institute of Applied Agriculture's "hands-on" teaching mission encourages students to get their hands dirty, and what better way to accomplish that than digging into a garden. Thanks to a $15,000 grant from the University Sustainability Fund, campus is getting a teaching garden. Read more here.

On Thursday, March 17, 2011, Glori Hyman, the IAA's Acting Director, hosted a VIP visit for 10 Maryland High School students who expressed interest in becoming agriculture educators. The event was part of Teach Ag Day, a national campaign to promote agricultural education and to share the career opportunities in agricultural education. Get the full story here.

1. Pesticide Use and Safety
2. Turfgrass Management
3. Insects of Ornamentals and Turfgrass Enhance your career.

Sign up now. Click on Online Classes link on the left menu. Registration deadline is August 15, 2011. Workshops begin the week of September 5.

Orientation for incoming IAA Students
Wednesday, July 13, 1123 Jull Hall
Thursday, August 18, 1123 Jull Hall

Please contact Carole Dingess at cdingess@umd.edu for details. Or call the IAA office 301-405-4685.

Matthew Zipper, a December Turfgrass Management graduate of the Institute of Applied Agriculture, will be honored as the IAA's 2011 Outstanding Student on April 20, 2011 at the AGNR Alumni Dinner. Matt completed his undergraduate degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Maryland in May 2009 and continued his education at the IAA soon after.

His name landed on the Dean's list every semester he attended the IAA and he was awarded scholarships from both the Shields Memorial Endowment and the Dr. Ronald J. Seibel Scholarship.

During his semesters at the IAA, Matt completed his internship at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, VA. He also participated in countless extracurricular events including the Mid-Atlantic Challenge Cup, volunteer hours at the Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship at Avenel and the 2011 Turf Bowl competition in Orlando, Florida.

Matt, now an Assistant Superintendent at Lakewood C.C. in Rockville, MD, is an exemplary student who took advantage of the many opportunities here at the IAA and of whom we are all very proud and honored to congratulate.

Sustainable Agriculture student, Deborah Lakowicz-Dramby, won the 2010 Maryland Outstanding Blog Award in the Health & Wellness category byBaltimoreSun.com.
Deborah started the blog, www.justsayingjs.blogspot.com, in 2008 as a place for the eco-curious to gather and sort through the latest green news, learn the history and future of food and agriculture, strive for sustainability, reflect on fun encounters in life and nature, and work to reduce every one’s impact on the earth beneath us and the world around us.
This fall, Deborah enrolled in the IAA’s Agricultural Business Management Program with the goal of combining her writing skills with an agriculture education to pursue a new career in sustainable agriculture.
Deborah’s prize is a promotion ad campaign for the blog, valued at $500, on The Baltimore Sun’s website.