Goossen plans to teach agricultural education to multicultural students
Carmelita Goossen, senior in agricultural education at Kansas State University, Hillsboro, said her teachers at Goessel High School helped prepare her for college.
"Goessel was a very small school. I graduated with a class of 32," Goossen said. "In my school, the teachers really cared about me and pushed me to do my best."
Goossen is doing well at K-State. She is current president of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences and president of Alpha Tau Alpha, the agricultural education honorary.
She is also a member of Alpha of Clovia, a 4-H women's scholarship house; Multicultural Student Honor Society; College of Agriculture Honors Program; McNair Scholars Program; and Bicultural Education Students Interacting to Obtain Success.
"K-State has a lot of different organizations that you can get involved in," Goossen said. "It's a good way to build leadership skills and prepare for life after graduation.
"It also really helps you to network and get to know people from different majors," she said. "Networking is important because it pays to have connections that may help you to get a job."
Goossen said she most likes to be involved in multicultural organizations.
"Multicultural organizations help to keep diversity alive at K-State," Goossen said. "In today's society, it is very important to be culturally competent, and these organizations have done much to prepare me to live and work in a global society after graduation."
Goossen said one of the things she likes about the university is that K-State does its best to have a small-school atmosphere and to keep classes small.
"This is something I've noticed a lot in the College of Agriculture," Goossen said. "The professors want to make sure you understand. They really care about you. They are also very understanding if you have commitments to university activities and have to be out of class.
"College isn't just about school," she said. "It's what you do to build yourself as a person and build leadership skills."
In the future, Goossen hopes to teach agricultural education in Kansas to culturally and linguistically diverse students. She also hopes to earn her doctorate in agricultural education and work to adapt an agricultural education curriculum for culturally and linguistically diverse students.
