Twenty-two interns have now completed the Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association internship program. And we have three students who will graduate in May, who are seeking full-time work once they receive their diplomas.
A financial investment from TCGA members and the willingness of many to devote time and effort into the program have made it successful. It takes money to bring these interns on board each summer as we are competing with several other programs.
Host managers along with their staffs are committed to making sure our interns are able to gain “real-world” experience. And the TCGA staff is thankful to those who have hosted interns over the past 10 years. Without commitment from managers to make the program a meaningful experience, we would not be able to pull this off.
‘Long-Ball Hitters’
2016 intern Seth Witt and 2017 interns Zack Book and Zach Haydon plan to graduate in May 2018.
Russell McGee, an assistant research scientist in the Texas A&M Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department, describes the trio this way: “Long-ball hitters, not short-timers.” He also says the three students are sold on ginning — hook, line and sinker.
All three students did a great job in their respective internships. Seth Witt interned with Lummus Corp. last summer, so he has two summers of experience in the cotton industry. The TCGA internship program has built a good reputation in the TAMU BAEN department, and we continue to build the program at Texas Tech University.
To be successful, the cotton industry must be able to offer opportunities for these students after graduation or we will simply lose them to another field that is hiring. With the U.S. Department of Agriculture-National Agricultural Statistics Service forecasting a 9 million-bale crop, we are hoping this creates some openings in the cotton industry.
If you are interested in these graduates, contact Aaron Nelsen at the TCGA office, 512-476-8388, or aaron@tcga.org). He will be glad to put you in contact with them.
Let’s give these interns a chance in the cotton industry. They worked hard to earn it!
TCGA contributed this article.