Dr. Peter Krawczel has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar for 2014-15. He will spend five months in Croatia teaching and conducting dairy cattle welfare research. Krawczel says that he is looking forward to the opportunity to work with dairy farmers, scientists and students in a foreign country. This area of Croatia, Krawczel says, deals with heat stress and facility management issues that are similar to those faced by farmers in Tennessee, where Krawczel is an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee's Institute of Agriculture in Knoxville.  Krawczel was a graduate student at Miner Institute, earning his Ph.D. from the University of Vermont in 2011.

"If things go according to plan, my research there will be two-fold. First, I will conduct a general welfare assessment of some commercial dairy farms in Croatia. Second, I will evaluate cattle flow in one of their robotic farms to evaluate the effect of holding area stocking density on post-milking behavior... I also hope to establish long-term collaborations and/or recruit students to come spend time as visiting scholars/graduate students in TN. It would be a huge success for this opportunity to kick off a long-lasting collaborative effort between myself and my host institutions in Croatia," Krawczel said.

Krawczel was encouraged to apply for the Fulbright Scholars program by the Assistant Dean of Extension at the University of Tennessee following a two-week-long trip to Croatia that Krawczel took in 2013. The University has a memorandum of understanding with Croatian agro-business Agrokor -- a vertically integrated food industry giant in the region -- and the Unviersity of J.J. Strossmayer in Osijek, Croatia.

In addition to his research and the prestige of being a Fulbright Scholar, Krawczel said he is looking forward to the opportunity to enjoy some Croatian wines.

From all of us at Miner Institute, Congratulations, Peter!!! We are so happy for you and so proud of all your accomplishments!

Kristen Anderson returned to Miner in late August to begin an equine internship for the next year. Kristen was a summer experience in equine management student in 2013.  She graduated this past May from the University of New Hampshire with a Bachelor of Science degree in equine industry and business management. Kristen took courses that taught her things like how to build a barn; truck and trailer driving; and equine business and economics.

Kristen is happy to be back at Miner. “I love Miner,” she said, adding that she loves the barn and the horses.  “Everything is so tidy and everyone is so friendly.” Coming from New Hampshire, Kristen knows exactly what to expect from a North Country winter and it doesn’t intimidate her.  Winter is her favorite season, she says.

The coming year will be a great opportunity for Kristen to figure out what she likes and what she doesn’t like to help pave the way in her career, she says. Eventually she would like to own and operate her own horse farm where she trains and sells horses. She enjoys working with young horses and would maybe like to rehab horses from auctions and offer riding lessons. She loves New England and hopes to remain in the Northeast.