Aim 2 Title:
Develop and deliver K-12 food safety activities and experiments to be taught by graduate and undergraduate students
Aim 2 Project Team:
Aim 2 team leader:
Alicia Orta Ramirez, Cornell University; contact ao98@cornell.edu
Aim 2 team members:
Haley Oliver, Purdue University; contact hfoliver@purdue.edu
Martha Verghese, Alabama A&M University; contact martha.verghese@aamu.edu
Angela J. Roberts, Texas Wesleyan University; contact anroberts@txwes.edu
Salam A. Ibrahim, North Carolina A&T State University; contact ibrah001@ncat.edu
Travis Chapin, Cornell University; contact tkc24@cornell.edu
Aim 2 Current Efforts:
Cornell Food Science at STANYS Workshop: Cornell Food Science will present a hands-on session during the Science Teachers Association of New York State (STANYS) Annual Conference held in Rochester, NY, on November 5-8, 2011. This program will be taught by food safety graduate students at Cornell and is targeted towards middle and high school students. Materials can be requested from Rachel Pfuntner at rcp26@cornell.edu.
The North Carolina A&T food microbiology and safety laboratory will conduct two-one day workshops (Details will be posted early fall 2011) on food safety as part of the fall semester agricultural research program at North Carolina A&T. This program will be taught by the graduate students in the food and nutritional science; the audience for these workshops will be high school students. For more details, check with Judith C. Simon at JSimon@dpi.state.nc.us Materials will be posted here and can be requested from Salam A. Ibrahim at ibrah001@ncat.edu.
Aim 2 Completed Efforts:
Cornell University graduate students Rachel Pfuntner and Travis Chapin represented the Department of Food Science at the Vestal High School Agricultural Career Fair on October 27th, 2011. About 300 students came by to learn about career and educational opportunities in the field of Food Science.
On October 25th a team of four 9 and 10 year olds from New Jersey who are participating in the FIRST LEGO League Food Factor Challenge visited the Food Science department to learn about food safety in fluid milk processing systems. Nicole Martin, Research Support Specialist in the Milk Quality Improvement Program, Daina Ringus, graduate student in the Food Safety Laboratory, and Jason Huck, manager of Cornell Dairy, helped the team think through potential food safety issues that may be encountered in fluid milk processing. The team was also given a tour of the Cornell Dairy processing facility for a hands on look at how milk is processed.
Cornell Food Science at the New York State (NYS) Fair: Graduate students and staff from Cornell University's Department of Food Science hosted a booth in the 4-H Youth Building at the NYS Fair Saturday, September 3, 2011 from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Cornell's University's Food Science booth engaged over 600 people of all ages in interactive educational activities focusing on food safety.
Cornell University hosted a 2 1/2 day workshop on food safety as part of the 4H Career Explorations conference at Cornell June 28-30. 12 students in grades 9-12 from across New York State participated in food safety activities led by food safety graduate students. Students were presented with an outbreak scenario and spent the remainder of the time working in small groups and with graduate students to use epidemiological and molecular techniques to determine the most likely source of the outbreak as well as to suggest control and preventative measures. Materials are posted here and can be requested from Travis Chapin at tkc24@cornell.edu. The conference was sponsored by the New York State Cooperative Extension Service at Cornell University
North Carolina A&T State University hosted the Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP) this summer from June 27-July 22. 3 high school students performed food science research in Dr. Salam A. Ibrahim's lab as described below:
- Dedrick Dunton: Antimicrobial activity of ascorbic acid alone or in combination with lactic acid on Escherichia Coli O157:H7 in laboratory medium.
- Caleb S. Locklear: Antimicrobial activity of onion extract against Escherichia coli O157:H7.
- Lisa Wamban: The Effects of Selected Rat Poison on the Growth of Yogurt Culture.
