SKIP TO PAGE CONTENT
Menu

Student Experiential Learning

Student Experiential Learning

Through the guidance of our College professors, students use the knowledge gained from inside the classroom out into the world for an immersive experience. Congratulations to all interns from the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences!

2024 Intern of the Year, Helene Keiser

Helene Keiser, Jr. Animal Science major from Gothenburg, Nebraska, interned at Johnsonville in Wisconsin. She was selected from a field of 17 nominees across the University. 

Keiser, who worked in Johnsonville's sourcing department, was one of 20 interns from around the country employed over the summer at the Wisconsin-based company. 

During her internship, Keiser helped restart Johnsonville's annual Brat Fry, held for the first time in five years, and organized two office fundraisers to cover the event's overhead costs, ultimately helping Johnsonville raise more than $6,500 for Feeding America-Eastern Wisconsin. She also developed her own presentation, "Beef 101," in which she educated more than 70 coworkers about the beef processing industry and how it differs from the pork industry, with which they were more familiar. 

"I was assigned to purchasing, mostly in meat and casings, but I got to see all aspects, even sow procurement," Keiser said. "I really stepped out of my comfort zone being in a sourcing position on the business side rather than on the meat science side." 

 

Helene-Keiser
2023 Intern of the Year, Kylee Henneberry

Kylee Henneberry, Jr. Agricultural Business and Economics major from Slinger, Wisconsin, was selected from a field of 13 nominees across the University. She worked from May to August as a government affairs intern for CHS Inc., a Fortune 100 company owned by farmers, ranchers and co-ops from across the country. 

As Intern of the Year, Hennebury will receive a $1,000 scholarship and will be submitted for the National Cooperative Education & Internship Association Academic Intern of the Year award. 

She "was truly more than just an intern to us," wrote Will Stafford, CHS's director of federal government affairs. "She was an integral part of our team and what we were able to accomplish while she was with us. This was our first summer having an intern in our Government Affairs office, and to put it simply, we could not have asked for a better person to join our team than Kylee."

"I was certain that I wanted to go to law school to practice law involving agricultural issues," Henneberry wrote in an application letter. "However, after this summer, I am heavily considering pursuing the policy aspect rather than legal. After this summer of experiences and mentorship, I am more confident than ever in who I am as a person in both my professional and personal life." 

Kylee-Henneberry
2022 Intern of the Year, Jesus Renee Padilla

Jesus Renee Padilla, Sr. Animal Science, worked from May through August 2022 as an intern at the Cargill Protein Facility in Friona, TX where he was asked to find a better way to cut hanger steaks during the processing of cattle for food. 

The hanging tender, it's technical term, is "a very delicate piece that's just held on by a tissue," Padilla said. 

Due to additional costs at Cargill, that method was not chosen, however, Padilla devised a second option, which was then adopted, in which workers were retrained on how to place animals on the evisceration table. 

Padilla was born in California but moved to Mexico at age 8 when his parents returned to their native country. The family moved to Hart, Texas in 2014 when his father was hired at the North Fork Feedyard and has worked in the meat industry since his teen years. Working in this industry allowed him to support his family and eventually, at 24, enroll in the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences. 

"We came from nothing, but honesty and hard work brought us far," Padilla said. "It's a priviledge to be named Intern of the Year. I felt like an underdog since I'm not a traditional student, but I'm honored and humbled to be recognized." 

jesusrenee-padillainternoftheyear-22.JPG
2024-2025 Outstanding Interns in the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences
  • Jessica Dexter, SR. in Agricultural Media and Communication from Delta, Colorado, interned at Standard Meat Co.
  • Will Hauerland, JR. in Agribusiness and Economics from Columbus, Texas, interned at Five Rivers Cattle Feeders
  • Mikayla Hudnall, SR. in Animal Science from Lorenzo, Texas, interned at Food Safety Net Services
  • Lane Golla, SR. in Animal Science from New Braunfels, Texas, interned at Tyson Foods
  • M'Kenna McFadden, SR. in Animal Science from Lubbock, Texas, interned at Cactus Feeders
  • Emma McNabb, SR. in Animal Science from Brentwood, California, interned at Four Sixes Ranch
  • Ava Pluchino, JR. in Agribusiness and Economics from Houston, Texas, interned at Sen. Ted Cruz's campaign
2023-2024 Outstanding Interns in the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences
2022-2023 Outstanding Interns in the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences