National Garden Intern 2015
Kate Bassette
Kate Bassett graduated from The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) on May 10, 2015. She received her B.S. In Agricultural and Extension Education. She focused heavily on environmental science education and youth leadership development. While studying for her undergrad, she also participated in Army ROTC receiving a minor in military studies.
Kate hails from Danville, Pennsylvania where she developed a deep passion for agriculture. Growing up on a small farm and being heavily involved in 4-H and FFA, she developed the desire to share the love of agriculture with all audiences and pursued agricultural education.
Studying agricultural education was an avenue for several great experiences during her undergrad which includes several study abroad trips, student teaching in Belize, and working with Outdoor School ( a 5th grade camp learning about the environment) as a counselor and teacher.
While agricultural education is geared more towards secondary education, Kate became more interested in the role of informal education in teaching about the agricultural sciences. This interest led her to apply for the National Garden Internship at the US Botanic Garden upon graduation.
During her internship, Kate had the wonderful opportunity to integrate several of her skills. Her organizational and logistical skills helped her to make HOPS a smooth running program while her ability to work with a wide range of students allowed her to make several different lessons come alive within the garden’s conservatory for visiting guests.
After the internship Kate will be entering the military. While her military career is yet uncertain, she hopes to one day return to informal agricultural education to continue culturing her passion for informal agricultural education.
