Precision Connect ’25 to showcase SDSU students’ ag internships

Story by Kay Norton

More than 70 South Dakota State University undergraduate students will showcase their agriculture industry internship experiences at Precision Connect ’25 Thursday, Nov. 6, at the Raven Precision Agriculture Center. 

This is the fifth annual Precision Connect event, started in conjunction with the 2021 opening of the center. 

“An industry internship is a critical component of a student’s education,” said Kasiviswanathan Muthukumarappan, Klingbeil Endowed Department Head and Distinguished Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering. “Combined with the classroom and hands-on education our students receive within their SDSU degree programs, an opportunity to learn ‘in the field’ provides unique perspectives and real-world experience that enhance their knowledge and contributions to agriculture.” 

Students in two departments within the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences and the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering will participate: the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering and the Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science. Students in both departments earn class credit for their internships and are placed with industry partners whose businesses match their individual interests. 

“We are very grateful for the agricultural industry partners who work with our students,” said Joseph Cassady, South Dakota Corn Endowed Dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. “This type of collaboration benefits our students tremendously, providing a networking opportunity that is helpful for both the students and businesses that may be their future employers.” 

On-site registration is available and begins at 12:30 p.m. at the Raven Precision Agriculture Center. The event begins at 1 p.m. in the atrium with students presenting posters showcasing their internship experiences. At 2 p.m., the crowd will move to the high bay area of the center to hear guest speaker Kent Klemme. 

Klemme is the director of engineering, Turf and Compact Utilities Products Department for John Deere. His keynote address is titled “Precision Connect – Discover and Engineer the Future.” Following the presentation, guests will be treated to SDSU ice cream, and tours of the center will follow. 

Students, faculty and staff, members of the ag industry and the public are invited to attend. In order to plan appropriately, please RSVP via email.

Later in the evening, alumni, past and present faculty, students and industry leaders will celebrate the 100th anniversary of SDSU’s Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering with a banquet at Club 71. Klemme will deliver a keynote address titled “Driving the Future of Agriculture” during the evening event.