The Center for Dairy Excellence has named Lyndsey Royek and Sara Kitchen as interns for the summer of 2013. Royek, a native of Corry, Erie County, and Kitchen from Danville, Montour County, will work with center staff to expand their knowledge of the dairy industry and refine their business and communication skills.
“We are pleased to have two outstanding individuals working with us as summer interns,” said John Frey, executive director of the Center for Dairy Excellence. “Both Lyndsey and Sara will be involved with many projects at the center, including developing a ‘Dairy Family Business Resource Center’ on our website.”
As the business intern at the center, Royek will further refine the center’s dairy business planning template and coordinate the summer “Open House and Dairy Tour” events. A senior at Virginia Tech majoring in agricultural economics with a concentration in agribusiness, Royek is active in the Dairy Club on campus and has been a major contributor to the club yearbook. She was also a member of the 2012 Virginia Tech Dairy Judging Team, which placed fifth in the North American International Livestock Exposition dairy judging contest in Louisville, Kentucky. Royek was also the high individual for the Holstein class at the Eastern States Dairy Judging Exposition in Massachusetts last fall.
As the communications intern, Kitchen will develop a community event planning toolkit and assist with the center’s consumer and communications resources during the summer. Kitchen is a junior at the Pennsylvania State University majoring in animal sciences and minoring in agricultural communications. She serves as the social media chair in Penn State’s Dairy Science Club and is a member of Alpha Zeta Honorary Agricultural Fraternity. Aside from her activities at Penn State, Kitchen is a member of the Pennsylvania Junior Holstein Association’s executive committee and is a freelance writer for Progressive Dairyman Magazine.
“We look forward to having Sara and Lyndsey make an impact not only within our organization, but also within the industry as a whole over the next three months and well into the future,” said Emily Yeiser, dairy initiatives manager at the Center for Dairy Excellence.
Royek and Kitchen are both eager to begin their work at the center and are looking forward to the multitude of experiences they will gain as they work alongside producers and industry professionals.
For more information about the Center for Dairy Excellence, call 717-346-0849 or visit www.centerfordairyexcellence.org.