Horticulture Communications and Outreach
Front Range Region
Larimer
County
(Denver, Douglas)
- Natural Resources and Sustainability
- On-campus
Primary Topic:
Natural Resources and Sustainability
Other Topics:
Emergency Planning and Resources, Food and Agriculture, Health and Well-Being
Internship Overview:
Colorado gardening and landscaping is difficult due to our unique soils and rapid weather changes. In Spring and Fall, temperatures are known to fluctuate leading to plant death and poor adaptability. These conditions leave many home gardeners with little to no information on how to protect their plants and make evidence-based decisions. CSU Extension has been helping people grow in our state for 150 years and although we have a wide variety of resources (Blog, factsheets, social media, county websites, online courses, etc.), sometimes we get caught off guard with which information to share in a timely matter. Effective communication skills are crucial to the success of CSU Extension. Therefore, we would like to have an intern to help us build a seasonal communication plan and identify recommendations to support sharing resources at the right time.
Goals, Scope and Objectives:
This internship will focus on the effective communication of CSU Extension Horticulture resources through:
– Build a communication plan and calendar for disseminating horticulture information
– Organize resources depending on the growing season in Colorado
– Share best practices for effective communication of horticulture resources to county educators
– Propose a plan to unify all resources in the CSU website
– Attend outreach events to practice sharing horticulture resources to and identify resource preferences of the general public (CSU Spur, County Fairs, etc)
– Build a communication plan and calendar for disseminating horticulture information
– Organize resources depending on the growing season in Colorado
– Share best practices for effective communication of horticulture resources to county educators
– Propose a plan to unify all resources in the CSU website
– Attend outreach events to practice sharing horticulture resources to and identify resource preferences of the general public (CSU Spur, County Fairs, etc)
With which stakeholder group(s) will the intern work?
The intern will work with several stakeholder groups including the Engagement and Extension marketing and communications team, Horticulture and Landscape Architecture faculty and, statewide team for the master gardener program. The intern will also have direct contact with the community when attending outreach events to share evidence-based information. We will balance collaboration with independence to achieve the internship objectives. We value experiential learning opportunities and the development of skills directly related to science communication and outreach.
What student learning outcomes do you anticipate and what are the opportunities for professional development?
The intern will gain communication, problem solving and organizational skills. By preparing a communication plan, the intern will gain knowledge applicable to any discipline. Skills developed during the internship will be transferrable to other jobs and projects the student may pursue. The intern may also shadow horticulture staff and gain a broader understanding of the role of Extension interfacing with research and the community.
