Joshua Craver, Ph.D. has been appointed as the newest member of AFE’s Vic & Margaret Ball Committee for the Vic & Margaret Ball Intern Scholarship Program. He is an assistant professor of Controlled Environment Horticulture at Colorado State University.
Craver received his M.S. in Horticulture from Kansas State University in 2014 and Ph.D. in Horticulture from Purdue University in 2018. He teaches multiple courses at CSU including Greenhouse Management, Indoor Crop Production and Physiology, and Greenhouse Practicum. He also advises multiple graduate and undergraduate students engaged in research focused on enhancing the production of vegetable and floriculture crops in controlled environments.
Craver is not new to the American Floral Endowment. In 2011, Craver was a recipient of the Vic & Margaret Ball Intern Scholarship as an undergraduate student at Mississippi State University where he worked for the summer at Metrolina Greenhouses.
Noting the impact of his scholarship and internship experience, Craver shares his reason for joining the committee, “As a previous recipient of the Vic & Margaret Ball Intern Scholarship, I understand firsthand the experience, support, and opportunities this program provides. I’m incredibly excited to help facilitate this internship to support both our students and the future of our industry.”
In honor of the Endowment’s 60th Anniversary this year, Craver also shared his #AFEandMe story which has carried past his initial Vic and Margaret Ball Scholarship. “As I continued my education in graduate school, AFE facilitated support through the Paul Ecke, Jr. Scholarship. Looking back, it’s incredible to see how integral AFE has been in my education and in helping me achieve my career goals. The resources and programs AFE provides have an invaluable impact on the future of our industry. I’m excited to not only continue my involvement with AFE in the years ahead but also share these incredible opportunities with the next generation of students I now have the privilege to teach!”
As a member of the Ball Committee, Craver will be working with several AFE Trustees and other faculty members to review student applications for the Vic & Margaret Ball Intern scholarship program and provide counsel to help promote the program to students. He will be assisting the future generations of recipients understanding first-hand the lasting effects of this industry opportunity.
The Vic & Margaret Ball Intern Scholarship Program gives students the opportunity to gain practical, hands-on floriculture/horticulture experience through a three, four, or six-month paid internship at a commercial production greenhouse or nursery.
In 1992, Vic and Margaret Ball made a generous donation to AFE to establish this program for students to apply classroom knowledge to real-world experiences and help ensure successful future generations of horticulture professionals. In 2020, scholarship money awarded to students who take part in the Vic & Margaret Ball Intern Scholarship Program reached the milestone of $1 million and continues to grow each year.
