Veteran Jason Poole in the class popularly known as "Lamb Watch"
On the 4th of July millions of Americans celebrate the summer holiday with family and friends, barbecuing, lighting fireworks, and enjoying the warm weather outdoors. In their minds and hearts, people commemorate our freedom. We should also commemorate the bravery of veterans who have fought and died to make our country free. At the IAA, we are fortunate enough to call some of those military heroes our students. For veterans such as Jason Poole, Bob Borkowski, and Brandon Ellis, entering the two-year program was a wise choice to make following their careers in the service.
“I enlisted in the active Army in September of 1978, completing basic combat training and military police school, then spending three years stationed in what was then West Germany. I originally worked on a hawk missile site for 18 months and was rotated to work my remaining 18 months as a “road MP” or police patrol in the American community and bases in Central West Germany,” said Borkowski, who, upon retiring from the military, continued to serve society as a police officer for the University of Maryland, Baltimore and retired in June of 2007. “Over time I found the IAA leafing through a friend of mine’s agriculture literature. I chose the IAA based on the program’s curriculum and the possibility to learn who the major players were in sustainable agriculture in Maryland and do some serious networking,” said the veteran, who hopes to one day start his own honey bee business.
And Borkowski has no qualms about Jull Hall, his current hangout, where you’ll find him bantering back and forth with other students and faculty on any day of the school week. “The IAA would serve veterans well by recruiting them at military career days giving them the opportunity to learn a new skill set. Veterans can utilize their new skills with the management skills they learned in the military,” the Borkowski noted. “It would also help them transition back to civilian life which is a leading issue for veterans. Military life is regimented and strict which is the total opposite in civilian life.”
Like Borkowski, Brandon Ellis also had a passion for serving others. “At the age of 17 I signed up to join the Army,” said Ellis, who left for Fort Knox, Kentucky, in September 2002 and went through 19D Cavalry Scout OSUT ( One Station Unit Training ) training before being deployed to Iraq the following March.
Ellis’s unit was responsible for a large number of captures of High Valued Targets, including Saddam Hussein. During his career, Ellis held such positions as Driver, Gunner, Supply Assistant, Squad Leader, Lead Scout, Senior Scout, Armorer, Air Defense and Air Space Management Team Leader, Training Room NCO, and Protection Security Detail Team Leader. “In February 2013 I was medically retired,” said Ellis, who became interested in the IAA after finding that he truly loved raising and taking care of animals on a farm. Though he had always worked on one, Ellis never had one of his own and wanted to make that dream a reality.
“The IAA provided a more realistic choice for me with a two year program and internship where I can get more hands on experience,” he said enthusiastically. “For veterans looking to learn more about agriculture, but who don’t want to spend a lot of time in a 4-year commitment, the IAA is a good choice. The teachers at the IAA are understanding and respectful to veterans and the difficulty they have switching from military to civilian life/college life. The IAA has a great choice of different classes that will help put you on the path you choose.”
Lastly, Jason Poole was eager to come to the IAA to pursue a certificate in Sustainable Agriculture. After a semester in the IAA, he realized there were a great number of things he wanted to learn. “Additionally, I was very impressed with the number of events for students to network and engage with experts in the field outside of school. On a daily basis I receive messages regarding upcoming events, job opportunities, volunteer opportunities and a number of other things. The IAA is very inclusive,” he said encouragingly.
Poole was commissioned into the Active Duty Army as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1997 in the Medical Service Corps and moved to the Army Reserves in 2003 as a Captain. “In 2005 I was activated to deploy to Iraq. After my return, I resigned my commission in 2007 with an Honorable Discharge as a Captain from the US Army Medical Department and went into a civilian healthcare career.”
When Poole retired from healthcare in 2014 and tried his luck at the IAA, he did have some reservations about being an older student. “If anything, though, being older has been helpful since I can use my experience as a resource. Not everyone can draw on over 20 years of experience in healthcare, logistics, operations, and human resources, but one thing the military does is produce leaders, and leadership translates into any degree program,” said Poole, who believes that veterans would feel comfortable with the applied-methods style of learning that is typical of IAA classes. “I would encourage any veteran interested in agriculture, horticulture, turf/sport grass management, or any program at the IAA to consider the Institute of Applied Agriculture. You will definitely get your hands dirty in the IAA!”
