Introducing Ms. Paige Rohrbach
A little bit about me
I grew up in small town in Berks County, called Oley Valley! We have one traffic light, one grocery store, and many cows! I didn't grow up on a farm, but was surrounded by agriculture my entire life. My Grandparents owned a small dairy farm, until they sold it in 2009. From what I was told, I was very afraid of the cows and would not step foot in the milking parlor or barn. They sold the farm due to lack of help and none of the kids wanting to take it over. My 6 cousins and I all wish that they would have kept it and I can only begin to think about what path my life would have taken me, being surrounded by the farm. I have very few memories of the farm, since I was so little, but I knew agriculture was instilled into me during that time!
Another trait that was instilled into me at a young age was the passion for hunting and the outdoors! This was in part due to my dad, who lived, breathed and slept hunting! At the young age of 8, I begged him to let me go out with him and I was able to do that with the PA Mentored Youth Hunting program! The deer got the best of me in 2010, but in 2011 at the age of 9, I was able to harvest my very first PA Whitetail!
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The pink snow boots and Orange Halloween shirt make a great look! |
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| Lake Okeechobee Florida, September 2018 |
I was fortunate enough to take an Introductory to Agriculture course for a semester in 8th grade and that is really where my passion took off. After completing that course and seeing my older cousin in FFA, I knew I wanted to join. I dove right in and took advantage of every event and opportunity there was, as well as all of the agriculture courses that were offered at Oley. My advisors, Mrs. Kacey Rice and Mr. Jeremy Deysher pushed me to my best ability and helped me when needed! During my time in Oley Valley FFA, I served as the Treasurer for 2 years as well as the Student Advisor! I excelled at each of the Public Speaking Leadership Development Events, and most notably the Conservation Prepared Public Speaking event where I went on earn a Silver Medal at the PA FFA State Convention! I wrote this speech on Chronic Wasting Disease, which is a fatal disease in white-tail deer and is running rampant in PA. I also competed in the Environmental and Natural Resources CDE in 2017 and Milk Quality and Products CDE in 2018, where my team and I placed 2nd both years and earned ourselves a trip to Big E. Although, I was unable to attend the Big E Competition in 2018 due to hunting Alligators in Florida!
I had an SAE placement project working in my family's sandwich and pizza shop. The M and M sandwich and pizza shop was a town favorite, but unfortunately got into the hands of some owners who didn't do very well with it. After my uncle and cousin bought the business, they were able to restore it back to what many people wanted it to be. They reopened for business in fall of 2017 and I started working there from the beginning. I put many hours of work into that place, roughly 20 hours during school, and 30-35 hours during the summer. This was how I was able to earn my Keystone degree in January of 2020, and then my American Degree in October of 2021. I really only stopped working there to go to college, and have even worked a few hours in the summer!
I came into high school knowing that I wanted a career in wildlife or environmental science. After taking courses such as Animal Science, Plant Science, Food Science, and Animal and Plant Biotechnology, I knew that I wanted a career in Agriculture. I also had a passion for teaching, as all throughout elementary and middle school I wanted to be a math teacher, until I reached calculus and knew that wasn't for me. During my Junior year, I decided that I really enjoyed all aspects of agriculture and I found that an Agricultural Education was the career choice for me!
Now it was time for the next decision, where was I going to study at? I knew I did not want to go out of state, so I applied to Penn State and Delaware Valley University. I had my heart set on Penn State after many visits, but my mom wanted me to have options, so I didn't put all of my eggs in one basket! I very excitedly found out that I was accepted to Penn State, while on the top of a mountain in Centre County for a hunting trip getting ready to walk into the woods 😀. I had toured multiple times at Penn State and was even invited up for a weekend to receive the Penn State Provost's Scholarship for $24,000. This definitely set things in stone for me, but even though I was accepted to Penn State University Park, I had some hesitation moving away from home and had considering dropping back to Berks Campus. I had debated this long and hard for about 2 months, and ultimately decided, I was moving north!
Fast forward a few months and Covid makes it's nasty appearance, and I get the longest spring break in high school history and the quickest 30 second graduation ceremony! I was still set on going to University Park in the fall, until my schedule came out and all of my classes were on Zoom. I decided that financially, it was best for me to stay home for the year and complete those classes from home! I can whole heartedly tell you, that this is the biggest blessing to come out of Covid as I was grateful for that extra year at home to acclimate to college classes!
Finally......Real College Life
I finally moved to State College at the start of my sophomore year and I hit the ground running! I got involved in many clubs and activities such as The Penn State FFA Alumni and Supporters Chapter, Teach Ag! Avengers, and PSU Ag Advocates. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as an Avenger and an Advocate because I get to interact with prospective students and encourage them to come to Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences or even join the Profession of Agriculture Education.
I also got to work alongside one of my Ag Ed professors, Dr. Curry on the Making Cents Project. This is an organization in PA that works to increase Financial education courses in all high schools. Although it is not directly related to Ag, I have really enjoyed my time learning many computer shortcuts and different softwares that can benefit me as a Teacher one day!
Most recently I have started working at the Penn State Center for Professional Personnel Development. This is within the Agriculture Education Department here at Penn State and I complete office work, such as emails, excel spreadsheets, and whatever else needs to be done. Although I have only been at this job since the beginning of this semester, I have enjoyed learning more about the Agriculture Educators within the state and how I can use my resources.
I also got the awesome opportunity to join the GOAls Program, which stands for Global Orientation for Agricultural Learning. We got the chance to attend the World Food Prize held in Des Moines, Iowa in October. We have also been working towards planning our spring immersion trip in Minnesota over Spring break in March! Look for more coming on this exciting opportunity in a future blog!
I was able to obtain an internship last summer working with the Montgomery County 4-H office. One of the main reasons that I was excited about this internship was to get a better understanding about how 4-H works. I was never in 4-H, but I wanted the knowledge so that I can help my future students who are involved in the organization.
On top of clubs and jobs, I have also been busy in my coursework. I have taken classes such as Animal Science, Agronomy, Ornithology. As of this semester, I am beginning my Ag Ed courses and have started learning about Ag Mechanics, as well as how to be a well rounded teacher. I am excited for whats to come!
Wow! It is has been a crazy ride the last 5 semesters, from traveling and working, to learning and experiencing. I am so excited for the next 18 months as I begin to choose my Student Teaching placement for the Spring of 2024. And then we have our eyes set on the finish line, Graduation, which is May 5, 2024! Look out for future blogs such as my trip to Minnesota, what I am looking for in a teaching placement, and so much more.
Sincerely,
Paige
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