Ag Students Compete in Midwest Dairy Challenge

Event Held Virtually This Year A group of five Wilmington College agriculture students evaluated a wide scope of dairy farm operations as part of a regional competition in the Midwest Dairy Challenge. PICTURED are team members Madeline Altherr, Allyson Cupps, Hannah Houseknecht, Molly Moffett and Hayley Moore. WC's team competed against 18 teams from 13 other schools representing a range of institutions from Purdue and Ohio State to Illinois and Michigan State universities. Team members are Madeline Altherr, Allyson Cupps, Hannah Houseknecht, Molly Moffett and Hayley Moore. Those five, plus Jodie Jennings, Daniel Woboldt, Chloe Hyde and Kayli Long, also have participated in recent Ohio Dairy Challenge contests hosted by The Ohio State University. The Dairy Challenge involves students touring dairy farms to review data and information about the farm, interview the business' management/ownership and compile their findings to make determinations as to how well the farm is doing, along with identifying areas in which the farm could improve. They ultimately gave their presentation before a panel of judges from the dairy industry followed by a question/answer segment with feedback from the judges. Students also have the opportunity to attend a career fair and educational seminars. Due to the pandemic, all aspects of this year's competition were conducted virtually. Dr. Daryl Nash, assistant professor of agriculture noted that, in a normal year, students would stay in a hotel near the participating dairy farm, tour the farm, attend the career fair and educational seminars, and give their presentations — all in-person. "Our students worked really hard at building a presentation over the course of two weeks and did a great job giving their presentation and answering the questions from the judges," Nash said, "especially considering that this was the first regional Dairy Challenge for them."