Career camp at West Hills College Coalinga will help students learn about agriculture

A career camp for students from Avenal and Kettleman City will give kids an opportunity to learn about jobs in agriculture at West Hills College Coalinga Farm of the Future starting on July 19, the West Hills Community College District said.

The free camp will run from July 19 to July 24 and will allow 50 seventh and eighth grade students to explore four different career tracks, including agriculture production and manufacturing, design and fabrication, equipment operation and geospatial agriculture.

Students will learn about specific jobs like agriculture economist, pest control adviser, irrigation consultant and certified crop adviser.

They will be able to engage in an array of hands-on activities as they cycle through the four career tracks. Many students involved are part of a program at Avenal High School that will allow them to graduate from West Hills College Coalinga with a degree at the same time as they graduate from high school.

“We’re really trying to excite and motivate the next generation of students to understand what ag is in the modern era, and we’re also trying to achieve one of the missions of the Farm of the Future: to create an educated, well-trained workforce for our region,” said Clint Cowden, Farm of the Future director. “That starts now. If we don’t give them this training, they might not otherwise have selected agriculture as a career path.”

The camp is sponsored by Wonderful Education, formally known as Paramount Education Program, part of the Wonderful Company.

This story was originally published July 10, 2015 at 6:24 PM with the headline "Career camp at West Hills College Coalinga will help students learn about agriculture."