Hi everyone! My name is Emma Nagorny, and I am a Student Farm intern majoring in Agricultural Science with a minor in Horticulture. I’m from Johnson City, NY and am interested in working with plants and developing stronger agricultural programs within youth education. During the course of my internship, I will serve as the Greenhouse Manager for the summer of 2025 and the CSA Communications Manager for the fall of 2025. I grew up as the granddaughter of a former farmer, so it was inevitable that I spent a large portion of my childhood gardening and learning about agriculture from my Grandpa! He got me interested in agriculture at an early age and now I have the opportunity to continue this journey at his alma mater!
Prior to coming to Penn State, I did research with microgreens and helped implement a vertical gardening program at my high school using Tower Garden hydroponic systems. I then started working on the farm in August of 2024 and had the opportunity to spend the fall semester learning more about agriculture through hands-on experiences both on the farm and around the community. In addition to working on the farm, I have been able to work with one of the Student Farm’s AmeriCorps members, Ayiana, on various pop-up workshops for Penn State students, help at Student Farm Events (including Plant Powered PSU and Harvest Fest), and work with Marta at Sunday Brunches on the Farm and cooking workshops held throughout the year.
Outside of the work I do with the Student Farm’s Sustainable Food Systems Network through my internship (and previously as part of my CSFWS) I also work with the Centre County YMCA Anti-Hunger Program as an Operations Assistant for their backpack packing program. This program provides thousands of grade school students throughout Centre County with food to take home on weekends throughout the school year. Part of any sustainable food system is the proper allocation of food to those who need it, which is why working with this program and the Student Farm is particularly important to me.
During my next three years at Penn State, I am hoping to get more involved with the Student Farm Club’s youth education team. I joined at the beginning of April and was able to help at a seeding activity at the Our Lady of Victory Elementary School as well as the Earth Day event held on the Student Farm for eighty fourth graders from a local elementary school. There are significant gaps in youth agricultural education, and not for lack of enthusiasm on the students’ end! The children that I worked with were very eager to learn more about plants and were excited to get to watch their seedlings grow, so I hope that I will have the opportunity to bring that experience to more students in the future!
