By Jackie Taylor
Let me introduce you to the future leader of California Agriculture, Ashleigh Sorensen, an honors student at CSU-Fresno. She is active in promoting the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology at CSU-Fresno through the Associated Students Incorporated Student Senate. WaterWrights proudly presents an interview with one of the top young agriculturalists around.
Q: What is your Name and title?
My name is Ashleigh Sorensen and I currently serve as Fresno State’s Associated Students Incorporated Senator for the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology.
Q: What is your major?
My major is Agricultural Business.
Q: Where are you from?
I am from Sanger, California.
Q: How did you earn the title of JCAST Student Senator?
I applied for the position last February and I was elected by my fellow students to serve in this role.
Q: What do you like the most about being the JCAST student senator?
I have really enjoyed getting to connect with students and faculty while serving in this role.
I really wanted to bring back a sense of community to the Jordan College after the last two years of being online due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Through helping host and volunteering at events, I have thoroughly enjoyed the connections that I have made with other students.
Q: How did you get involved in the agricultural industry?
I grew up in a farming family. My father, Craig Sorensen, is a third-generation farmer. He farms almonds, along with various types and varieties of tree fruit and citrus in the Sanger and Parlier areas. Also, being a part of my high school’s FFA chapter furthered my interest in agriculture.
Q: Why is it important to advocate in agriculture?
It is important to advocate in agriculture because this industry is responsible for feeding the world. Like anything, knowledge placed in the right areas is key to success in agriculture advocacy. There is a massive void in education relating to this industry and we have to devote time as a whole to overcome that. With time and effort, we can work
towards better education for all on the inner workings of our agriculture endeavors.
Q: What do you see as potential risks involved with California’s Water Wars?
California has had its difficulties, as we are all acutely aware, with water and all of the intricacies that come with the territory. At the end of the day, we have a growing issue that extends far beyond the problems in Los Angeles and Owen’s Valley. California’s population
shows no signs of decreasing anytime soon and our water supply seems to be fulfilling that role instead.
Q: What agricultural organizations are you currently involved in?
I am currently a member of the Agriculture Business Club at Fresno State and Associated Student Incorporated representing the Jordan College of Agriculture.
Q: What do you believe are three irrigation strategies that the Campus Farm should utilize?
While irrigation is not necessarily my specialty in school, based on my knowledge the school does a good job using different systems to better study different positive and negative attributes associated with the different methods. While the trend for irrigation in ever-prevalent tree crops has headed away from flood irrigation to various drip line methods and versions, there are still pros and cons to both. Being a working educational farm, looking at the effects of frost prevention and ground water recharge are very interesting opportunities for those studying those areas.
Q: What are the three biggest challenges you face as the student senator of the Jordan College of agriculture at CSU-Fresno?
A significant challenge I experienced along with many other students was in Spring 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, and Fresno State shut down its campus and all classes became virtual. For me personally, I struggled with transitioning from classroom learning to virtual courses. This experience also hindered my ability to meet and
collaborate with others. While it was not an ideal situation, I remained positive and focused on being disciplined in my studies and made an effort to attend virtual meetings to connect with fellow students. Another challenge I have faced is finding a specific focus. Fresno State has lots to offer and I have enjoyed the challenge working towards finding my path through the college of agriculture. Another challenge I have faced is finding meaningful and positive ways to influence the Jordan College. I have enjoyed working to help and encourage my fellow students in any way that I can and have welcomed the challenge of finding new ways of accomplishing that.
Thank you Ashleigh for taking the time to chat with WaterWrights about your tenure as the ASI Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology Senator. We look forward to our future collaborations with the Associated Students Inc. and Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology at California State University- Fresno. If you are interested in getting involved in supporting ASI or the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology please email her directly at asi_sen_jordancollege@mail.fresnostate.edu or find more information on the ASI website or the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology websites. http://fresnostate.edu/jcast/
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