SUNY Cobleskill hosts annual high school day

Lauren Takores, The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y.
·2 min read

Sep. 22—More than 1,000 regional high school students and agriculture teachers participated in SUNY Cobleskill's annual High School Day on Friday, Sept. 22.

Of the 40 schools that participated, 11 were new this year, according to SUNY Cobleskill staff.

Area schools participating included Cobleskill-Richmondville High School, Delaware Academy in Delhi, Downsville Central School, Middleburgh Junior/Senior School, Schoharie Junior/Senior High School, Sharon Springs Central School, Sidney High School and Unadilla Valley Central School in New Berlin.

The day's activities included friendly competitions and contests in the fields of agricultural engineering, animal science, business, food service and agricultural management, canine training and management, early childhood, fisheries and wildlife, environmental science and plant science.

Many of the events centered around the Center for Agriculture and Natural Resources, as well as outdoor agriculture engineering field demonstrations and an industry expo with representatives from businesses supporting the programs in the ag engineering department showcasing some of the high-tech farm equipment.

Unadilla Valley agriculture and applied sciences teacher Jessica DeVries said the school brought 43 students and seven chaperones.

The field trip is a requirement for her class, she said.

Unadilla Valley juniors Hunter Sherman, 15, and Shania Curtis, 15, expressed elation at winning a contest that tested their STEM knowledge by using recyclable materials to build and test a mini parachute.

Their parachute stayed airborne the longest, they said.

"I could literally hug you for arraigning this," Sherman said to DeVries.

The students demonstrated how their parachute worked, describing the trial and error process in building the contraption.

Curtis said she had been looking forward to just visiting the college — "It's so fancy," she said — and Sherman said that while she wanted to do the contests, "I was definitely looking forward to holding the snakes."

"The turtles are my favorite," Curtis said.

Other contests included moving hydraulic and light construction equipment operation through a training course, troubleshooting small gas engines, tractor driving and welding.

In the plant science category, students competed to identify forage and seeds, forest trees, insects and weeds.

Students also put their putting skills to the test on the golf green outside Curtis-Mott Hall. The greens are created and maintained by the college students in the turfgrass and golf turf programs.