Vol. 40, No. 3 Summer 2008 - University of Minnesota, Crookston

Ketring had a wide variety ofresponsibilities at the experiement station.Here she holds a Dorper lamb.Agriculture in an Island ParadiseMoving back to Bemidji,Minnesota from the U.S. VirginIslands in March might seem like adifficult transition, but forRosemary “Christie” Ketring, ’05,the cold and snow are no surprise.Growing up in East Grand Forks,Minn., Ketring found city life didnot prohibit her from discovering apassion for agriculture.Ketring was used to a smallerhigh school and the proximity ofthe Crookston campus to homewas appealing. More importantly,the campus offered her the degreeKetring on horseback at the Petronella Cattle Facility.option she wanted in animalindustries management. Sheimmersed herself in activities likethe Horseman’s Club, AnimalScience Club, and IntercollegiateHorse Show Association (IHSA)while on campus.“I really enjoyed my collegiateexperience at Crookston. Eventhough I did not have abackground in agriculture, Iwanted to learn everything Icould,” Ketring explains. “Theother students helped me learn andform my own ideas and opinions.As a group, we could get thingsdone because we enjoyed workingtogether; I never felt like anoutsider.”Once graduated, Ketring set offon the adventure of a lifetime,taking a position as a researchanalyst in the animal scienceprogram at the University of theVirgin Islands AgriculturalExperiment Station in Kingshill.Ketring had to makeadjustments for thechange in lifestyle andas the only femaleresearcher at thestation, she foundthe challengesgratifying.Ketring wasresponsible formanaging thefacility, orderinginventory,managing workers inthe field and for thehealth and well-being of theexperiment station’s sheep herd. “Ithink this whole experience has mademe easier to deal with,” Ketringadmits. “I am no longer intimidatedby new situations, and I gained selfconfidenceand self-reliance as aresult.”Those abilities were enhancedbecause Ketring was allowed totake on responsibilities andmanage. “I had the freedom tomake decisions, offer suggestions,Ketring takes a blood sample from a sick BarbadosBlackbelly ewe.have my name on publishedresearch and attend the animalscience conference forprofessionals in my field.” Ketringrelished those opportunities, andthey were available to her becausethe experiment station is small. Inher undergraduate experience shediscovered that small class sizesoffer students great advantages.Those same things were true in herwork as a research analyst at theexperiment station.Will she miss heading to thebeach in one of the most beautifulplaces in the world? Probably, butMinnesota has its own special kindof beauty. That is somethingKetring won’t have to learn toappreciate, she was born to it.If you would like to learnmore about agriculture atthe U of M, Crookston, visitwww.UMCrookston.edu.13