Cows create careers
DAIRY Australia thanked supporters of Cows Create Careers and celebrated the program’s tenth anniversary with a dinner at the Korumburra Italian Social Club on Wednesday evening.
Cows Create Careers is a dairy industry project designed to raise awareness of careers in the dairy industry and to inspire young people to pursue dairy based careers.
The program, founded and run by John Hutchinson and Deanne Kennedy, puts calves and dairy industry curriculum into schools at no cost.
Dairy Australia managing director Ian Halliday spoke about the program, which links school students, teachers, dairy farmers and industry advocates.
“It all started here in Gippsland in 2004 and since then, Cows Create Careers has only continued to grow,” he said.
He said the program began in nine schools, mostly in South Gippsland, and this year has reached 209 schools and 51855 students across Australia.
“Many young people have been inspired to pursue a career in the dairy industry after completing the project,” he said.
Guest speakers Sally Pate and Ben Vagg took part in Cows Create Careers during their secondary schooling and now work in the industry.
Ms Pate had been attracted to dairy farming since childhood and her participation in Cows Create Careers at Leongatha Secondary College helped her make her decision.
“I realised, oh, I’m in my element. Finally, something at school that I’m interested in and actually want to do,” Ms Pate said.
She said her careers teachers were hesitant but she studied agricultural science and commerce at the University of Melbourne, milking during the holidays, and became an agronomist at Brown’s Fertilisers in Leongatha.
“I think it’s a fantastic program that is really valuable in opening up doorways and pathways to young people,” she said.
Mr Vagg attended South Coast Christian College when he took part in the program.
He knew he wanted to attend university and assumed he would end up working in the city.
“Cows Create Careers opened my eyes to the opportunities in the dairy industry,” he said.
Encouraged by his classmates’ elevated opinion of dairy farming after the program, he went on to study agricultural science at business at La Trobe University before finding work as an agronomist.
He is now studying a masters degree in agricommerce at Massey University in New Zealand on a Dairy Australia Trans Tasman Farm Business Scholarship.
Mr Halliday and Isabel MacNeill, Dairy Australia group manager of industry promotion and product innovation, thanked farmers who gave time and animals to the project.
“I congratulate and thank you all,” Mr Halliday said.
Strzelecki Lions Club awarded a fellowship to Ms Kennedy.
Waitering was provided by mothers from Korumburra Primary School in exchange for a generous donation to the school from Dairy Australia.
Appropriately, the buffet meals featured cheese, beef and cream.
Murray Goulburn, Strzelecki Lions Club and the Gardiner Foundation are strong supporters of the program.
Dairy dinner: from left, Jess Delon, Karen Fogas and Fiona McIntosh of Dairy Australia at the Cows Create Careers tenth anniversary dinner in Korumburra.
Thank you dinner: from left, Jo Duffy of Devondale Murray Goulburn and a beneficiary of Cows Create Careers, agronomist Sally Pate of Brown’s Fertilisers Leongatha, at the Cows Create Careers tenth anniversary dinner in Korumburra.
Smiling service: from left, Kylie Boston, a Cows Create Careers regional coordinator, receives a drink from Kerrie Twite of Korumburra Primary School Parents and Friends.
Cows Create Careers: from left, John Hutchinson and Deanne Kennedy of Cows Create Careers and Geoff Akers, chair of Dairy Australia, at the Cows Create Careers tenth anniversary dinner in Korumburra.
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Posted by brad on Sep 30 2014. Filed under Rural News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
