UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has awarded three faculty members with funding to support the development of innovative course curricula through the college’s Harbaugh Faculty Scholars program.
Tammy Shannon, academic advising coordinator and course instructor for the environmental resource management program; Margaret Hoffman, assistant professor of landscape contracting; and Ricky Bates, professor of horticulture, all received awards under the program.
The Harbaugh Faculty Scholars program was created by a gift from Penn State alumnus Earl Harbaugh and his wife, Kay. Income generated from the endowment is combined with funding from the college’s Office for Undergraduate Education to help faculty develop innovative teaching and learning methods. Faculty members who demonstrate a commitment to creativity and wish to cultivate new, innovative curricula are selected for the program.
“For almost 25 years, the Harbaugh Faculty Scholars program has provided faculty members in our college a means to offer unique and innovative learning experiences to students,” said Tracy Hoover, associate dean for undergraduate education. “The visionary support of Earl and Kay Harbaugh made this possible and supports the recipients as they continuously advance their scholarship of teaching and learning.”
Expanding first-generation experiences
Shannon said she will use the award to fund ERM 197, a first-year engagement course that is available to first-generation students entering the College of Agricultural Sciences and the Division of Undergraduate Studies. The course is taught by Shannon and Melissa Johnson, Penn State’s associate vice provost and associate dean for undergraduate education.
In addition to providing students with an introduction to the opportunities and resources Penn State offers, ERM 197 includes interaction with first-generation alumni from the college and University; a cooking collaborative with the student farm; health and wellness programming; career, research and fellowship mentoring; service and outreach with the community; an introduction to education abroad with the opportunity to participate in an international experience; and a networking event for first-gen students, faculty and university leadership.
Shannon, who also was a first-generation college student, said she wanted to help provide a classroom space for first-year, first-generation students to become full participants in their educations while building community with one another.
In spring 2023, Shannon co-led the ERM 499: First in Family to Study Abroad course trip to Costa Rica, which provided several first-generation college students with their first international experiences.
“According to the Consortium for Analysis of Student Success through International Education and researchers at the University of Georgia, only 8% of first-generation students study abroad,” said Shannon. “With approximately 17,000 first-generation undergraduate students enrolled in a residential academic program through Penn State, courses that offer opportunities for first-generation students to study abroad are incredibly important.”
By continuing to offer such curricula through courses such as ERM 197, Shannon said she hopes to expand study abroad opportunities to a greater number of first-generation students through collaboration with other colleges, campuses and land-grant institutions.
Penn State is a First-Gen Forward institution, and national first-generation day is Nov. 8.
Bringing global destinations into the classroom
Hoffman said she’ll use her award to integrate 360 video tours into courses she teaches, such as HORT 269: Residential Landscape Planning, HORT 368: Landscape Planting Design, and HORT 131: Herbaceous Perennial and Annual Identification. Additionally, HORT 412: Post-Harvest Physiology and INTAG 300: Tropical Agricultural and Food Systems — both taught by colleagues of Hoffman — also will receive modification through the inclusion of 360 video technology.
A GoPro camera films the video, which is edited on Adobe Premiere Pro software and supported by a platform called Thinglink. Viewers can observe the videos and tours on flatscreens, such as computers, tablets and phones, but get the full immersive experience using a headset such as the Meta Quest. On all of these devices, viewers can enjoy the scene looking up, down and all around as if experiencing the recorded events in person.
These immersive videos enable students to experience real world destinations such as international gardens without requiring transportation, according to Hoffman.
“The development of 360 tours increases equity and inclusion in the college landscape design classroom,” Hoffman said. “It allows all students equal, low-cost access to regional, significant landscapes. These immersive experiences increase active learning and can be viewed multiple times so that students can reflect, discuss and internalize new perspectives.”
The use of such technology can be diversified to revolutionize the educational experiences of all Penn State students, she explained. It provides a method of learning in which access to sites, affordability, and the use of subtitles and other accessibility features help ensure equal opportunities for students regardless of their financial status or disability.
The award also will help expand Hoffman’s Place-Based Immersive Learning for Landscapes, or PILLAR, project, which is a digital library of 360 video tours. The library currently contains 10 tours from four botanical gardens across the United States.
With the use of funds from the Harbaugh Faculty Scholars program, Hoffman will record additional videos at international gardens that will be available free of cost to the University community. Through the expansion of the PILLAR project, the Penn State Immersive Experience video library will become more global in nature, making 360 video experiences available to the public as well.
“It is the hope of PILLAR that collaborative projects can be established, allowing students to work with peers from different landscape backgrounds and institutions, both nationally and internationally,” said Hoffman. “Students can meet virtually, work together and share diverse perspectives through the program.”
Reducing food waste and boosting sustainability
Bates, who also received a Harbaugh Faculty Scholars award in 2022, said he will use funding to continue expanding resources available for HORT 412W: Post-Harvest Physiology, a course that explores the links between postharvest concepts, including the reduction of food waste and global agricultural sustainability.
Changes to the course will reflect a more hands-on and experiential delivery, according to Bates. With the introduction of postharvest technologies and equipment, students will complete modules pertaining to topics such as the conversion of starch to sugar in fruits and the production of mold on produce. Students will use tools, including time-lapse camera photography, to compare produce shelf life.
“Incorporating demonstrations in the course is a critical step in exposing students to postharvest ‘tools of the trade’ and will help them make the connection between postharvest physiology, technology and business enterprise,” said Bates. “These in-class demonstrations will come to life as we engage with industry and address key issues such as reducing waste in our global food systems.”
Traditionally, HORT 412W has not included a lab component. However, through the Harbaugh award, Bates will incorporate his preexisting lab space to become a postharvest teaching lab. Students will have access to thermometers, printers, starch test kits, light and dissecting microscopes, and other materials.
HORT 412W curricula also will allow students to utilize multiple forms of communication, including scientific blog posts, procedural instructions, articles and presentations, as compared to the previous model which required only a final paper.
“Postharvest is a cornerstone of all global food systems,” Bates said. “In addition to the incorporation of hands-on activities and experiential learning opportunities, the Harbaugh Faculty Scholars award is allowing me to expand course content to include a global perspective. This will strengthen students’ abilities to experience sustainability in their daily lives locally and to better understand sustainability issues regionally and globally.”