In this quarter long internship, Cut Flowers: Cultivation, Marketing and Culture, the student will work closely with a small-scale, sustainability-minded cut flower farm to gain skills in growing, harvesting and preparing cut flowers for sale. The student will explore agricultural concepts through on-farm experiences and through various texts. Academic learning will also focus on the cultural significance of flowers in various times and places. The student will submit weekly reflection writings, a 5 page synthesis paper at the end of the quarter and give a final presentation.
| Learning Objectives | Activities that will help me to attain this objective | What my sponsor will evaluate |
| Through internship and independent research, I will learn about the growing and harvest methods used on a small scale, sustainable cut flower farm. | I will intern on August Farm two days per week and participate in seeding, transplanting, harvesting and other farm related activities.
I will supplement internship learning by researching flower botany and agriculture in texts such as: The Flower Farmer by Lynn Byczynski, Specialty Cut Flowers by Allan Armitage & Judy Laushman and Cut Flower Garden by Erin Benzakein. |
I will post weekly reflections in my e-portfolio.
My 5 Page synthesis paper turned in Week 9. |
| Through internship and independent research, I will gain insight into the design and marketing aspect of a small scale flower farm. | In my internship, I will I will research floral design through existing literature and imagery. |
I will record my findings in my e-portfolio posts.
My 5 page synthesis paper turned in week 9. |
| As part of my independent research, I will explore the cultural significance of flowers in different parts of the world throughout time, including the current global flower market. | As part of my independent research I will explore several texts on this subject, including but not limited to: The Culture of Flowers by Jack Goody, Favored Flowers by Catherine Ziegler, The Reason for Flowers by Stephen Buchmann and Walter Benjamin’s Grave by Michale Taussig.
|
A portion of my e-portfolio posts will be dedicated to this topic.
My 5 page synthesis paper turned at the end of week 9. |
| Through the in-class portion of the SOS I will explore the following questions posed by the program:
How and why does the process of commodification appear to turn everything into objects of economic value? Should everything–human and non-human–be measurable and exchangeable? What alternatives exist? What alternatives can be created? |
I will participate in the 6 hour Tuesday meetings, including seminars and tasting labs and complete all readings and writing assignments as outlined on the syllabus. | Faculty will evaluate my attendance on Tuesdays and the completion and content of the assignments and activities as outlined on the syllabus, including seminar papers, tasting lab reflections and weekly entries in my e-portfolio.
Mid quarter and final narrative self evaluations. Final PowerPoint presentation during week 10. |
Evaluation of Work
The student will complete all assignments as described on the syllabus, including weekly documentation on the Project pages of the SOS program website. Because the student’s in-program ILC project requires a field supervisor, the student will provide the faculty with a field supervisor’s descriptive assessment of in-program ILC work completed with their guidance, expertise, or supervision by Thursday noon of week 10. This assessment should be discussed between the student and the field supervisor, subcontractor, or mentor, then provided on profession letterhead or email with current contact information directly to the faculty through email williasa@evergreen.edu. The student will complete comprehensive mid-quarter and final narrative self-evaluations and submit them to faculty prior to mid-quarter and final end of quarter student-faculty conferences. For the final documentation on Project pages, each student will post, and present in class on Tuesday or Wednesday of week 10, a 10-minute PowerPoint Presentation of 10-15 slides with text that demonstrates the highlights of the student’s in-program ILC Project. As a “best of the student’s Project pages,” this presentation will not be about the creation of new material, but rather the final PPT-based presentation will assemble and tell the story of existing material regarding the student’s SOS in-program ILC project.