Biology student to intern at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Maryland

Photos: Kris Hawkins informs students about the hydroponics system during an SPC Garden Club meeting. The system is used to grow plants in a water based, nutrient rich solution before transporting them to the outdoor community garden. 

St. Philip’s College student, Kris Hawkins, has accepted an internship with the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC). The 6,500-acre research site is located in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Hawkins will be working directly with USDA Superintendent, Benjamin Rosenthal, as a lab assistant.  

Kris has previously participated in on-campus projects that included the research of Callosobruchus maculatus (bean beetles). He was awarded the Student Engagement Grant for the completion of the project.

He also joined Assistant Professor Dr. Mary Kelaita and two other students on a biological field trip to Costa Rica last summer. His trip was funded by a scholarship given to him through the CIMA (Ciencia, Ingeniería, y Matemáticas Aliados)-LSAMP (Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation) Program grant. During the four and a half week-long journey in Costa Rica, he worked alongside five researchers from prestigious U.S. colleges and universities.

Hawkins will begin his internship with BARC in mid-February. The internship is part of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities National Internship Program. His research projects will focus on pigs and the Trichinella species.