Graduate student Brittany Bair’s tenacious spirit and caring attitude have allowed her to overcome difficulties in her life and pursue her passion for the agricultural industry and teaching.
Bair first became interested in agriculture during high school through showing animals. A car accident in 2012 left her paralyzed in her legs and fingers, but she was determined not to let that stop her from achieving her goals.
She returned to the show ring under a year later and began planning her future.
“I actually got so bored, because I could no longer work, that I started going to college,” Bair said. “I graduated with my bachelor’s in agricultural business, and that’s where I found Extension.”
Bair graduated this weekend with her Master’s in Extension Education along with graduate certificates in Communications and Technology and Human Animal Interactions. Although she faces physical limitations, Bair does not let them stop her from achieving her dreams.
“Like with video editing, it may take [someone] one to two hours to do a minute-long video, it takes me like twice as long,” she said. “It takes me twice as long to do a lot of things.”
Through her program, Bair found a love for teaching 4-H students. But she was unsure in the beginning.
“I was nervous about volunteering with 4-H, and I was really nervous about teaching kids and getting out into the community,” she said. “But thankfully, I’ve had great mentors, my advisor has been a great mentor in pushing me towards the teaching.”
Dessa Watson, Bair’s advisor and an instructor in the College of Agricultural Sciences ’Agricultural and Resource Economics Department, recalled her stand-out memories of Bair.
“Brittany has consistently impressed me with her meticulous attention to detail and her fearless approach to asking questions and seeking guidance,” Watson said. “These qualities not only make her a standout student but also a delightful individual to interact with.”
Bair was originally motivated to apply to CSU as a mentor of hers in high school always wanted to attend, prompting Bair to apply, to which she quickly found a welcoming community.
“I feel so welcomed by the teachers and just the environment on school online that I just don’t want to leave,” Bair said. “I think I was nervous to start my grad school experience, but I know I didn’t want to do it anywhere but CSU because it just, it felt like home.”
As Bair looks towards her next steps in life, she hopes to combine her love of animals and create an environment easily accessible to people with disabilities.
“My overall goal in life is to have an animal sanctuary that is all handicapped accessible, so that anyone with any kind of disability can come and visit the animals,” she says. “I’d love to do a cow sanctuary, specifically, and offer cow hug therapy.”
Following graduation Bair will be working will local 4-H students near her home in Pennsylvania to teach them video editing, which she remarked was one of her favorite classes during her time in the Extension program.
She is optimistic about her future as a teacher both in and out of the classroom, especially about the future impact she hopes to have on students.
“I’m influencing their minds. And I know that sounds corny, but it’s just having that one-on-one impact with a kid (and) they’re listening to me and knowing that I am just molding their minds for tomorrow,” Bair said. “I don’t know what else to say — it’s powerful.”
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