Milton Newberry III: From First-Gen Student to Student Advocate

Name: Milton Newberry III

Preferred Pronouns: He/His

Hometown & Current Town: Browns Mills, N.J./State College, PA

Graduation Year: BS 2007

Major & Minor: BS Wildlife and Fisheries Science

Additional Degrees & Institution: MAL Extension Education, University of Georgia; Ph.D. Agricultural and Extension Education Services, Natural Resources and Evaluation Specialization, University of Florida

Current Professional Title: Director of Student Access and Equity Programs

Name of Employer: Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences

Brief Description of Your Role: The academic journey is more than just taking classes and earning good grades. Our office [Office of Access and Equity] assists with the academic, personal, and professional journey of students. I provide support for our undergraduate students, faculty, and staff, and any other members of the Agricultural Sciences community. I provide academic coaching, and through that, career guidance to give them an idea of what their future could look like. I meet and check in with students frequently, and I also participate in recruitment of prospective undergraduate students.

Why did you choose Penn State?

Penn State had what I wanted to study. Being from south Jersey, it was still close enough to home that I could get home if I wanted but it gave me some space compared to the schools closer to home like Rutgers.

Financial aid also played a role. I was a first-generation student. At the time I was starting to think about college, my father passed away. It was just my mom, siblings, and I. It was a tumultuous time. We had to think about how to finance going to school.

With Penn State and the College of Agricultural Sciences providing financial aid, it made the decision easier. My first choice was originally Michigan State and they came to my high school for college fairs. But as I did more research, I realized Penn State had one of the stronger programs. Dr. Cathy Lyons sent me a letter highlighting the opportunities here. I never felt at home with Michigan State, but Penn State made it clear I'd have a home here.

What inspired you to pursue your degree?

I was seven years old playing football with friends down the street. I tackled someone to the ground. When we got up, I looked up in the tree and saw this dark and ominous figure that just stared back at me. It had these big wings and flew away. In hindsight, it was a Turkey Vulture, but at seven years old it was huge to me. I was intrigued. It put me down the rabbit hole of learning about animals.

My dad was a hunter and fisherman. I got more and more into animals. I liked to read nonfiction books about reptiles and mammals. In middle school, I realized I wanted to work with wildlife.

In high school, I decided I wanted to work with students and be a college professor. I knew I needed to get a Ph.D. That all led me on the track to Penn State and going back to school for higher degrees.

What clubs, organizations, or leadership roles were you involved in?

I was in the Penn State Blue Band. I was also in Phi Mu Alpha, a music fraternity. Then I was also in an acapella group called The Dreamers.

In addition, I worked at Redifer Dining Commons and worked 20 hours a week. With Blue Band, I had practices for many hours a week too. It was a lot. I look back and think I could've been more involved, but that's hindsight. I also briefly participated in MANRRS and Wildlife Society.

What is a favorite Penn State memory?

Some of my favorite memories come back to my classes. One was taking Forestry 203 Field Dendrology with McCormick. So many people told me the class was boring. It's a class where you identify trees. I loved the class. We got to be outside on campus and hike in Rothrock State Forest. We got to engage with foresters. Today, I have friends who still text me asking me to identify trees or I've helped neighbors decide what tree to plant in their yard.

In addition, any class I had with Dr. Gary San Julian, professor emeritus, also stuck with me. He was integral to my college experience. My advisor was Dr. Walter Tzilkowski, and along with Dr. Brittingham, both were major players in my experience here.

It was Dr. San Julian who really made me think about the power I had in my position, not only as a wildlife ecologist but a Black wildlife ecologist. He never made anything about race, but he knew I have a unique ability to connect with people. He always talked to me about what more I could do to be involved and was who introduced me to Shaver's Creek. Dr. San Julian was also the first person to write me a recommendation letter for graduate school, but also told me that he was passing the torch to me to do the same for students behind me.

How has your Penn State education influenced your career or life?

It gave me a great foundation to work in ecology and then work with the human dimensions of natural resources. So Penn State having both wildlife and fisheries science and affiliate centers like Shaver's Creek allowed me to see wildlife ecology in action. Dr. San Julian always said that wildlife management was 90% managing people and 10% managing the resource. If you don’t get people involved, the outcomes you want won't happen because you need support.

A quote I hold close to my heart that I heard from a professor [Dr. Martha Monroe] at one of my graduate institutions is, "My vehicle to a quality environment is through education and engagement." Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences education prepared me to use my technical expertise to engage with others and further connect them with nature. That's what some of my research focused on when I became an academic. If people are connected to nature they tend to want to protect it.

You've held a variety of positions in your professional career with the common denominator being education. What inspired you to pursue your current role in the college's Access and Equity Office?

I have been a graduate student, a scientist, a researcher, the professor, and the administrator. The common denominator working in higher education among all of those jobs is the college students. I always wanted to help people. I was put on this planet to help people. My love language is service and I love to help people.

I got here not only through my own hard work, but through all those who helped me along the way. I wanted to give back to the university that helped me get to where I am. I wanted to make a difference in the lives of students. I want the students I worked with to be able to look back and be able to say, "I was going through something and Dr. Newberry helped me." Dr. San Julian did that for me.

When I saw this opportunity, I jumped to it because I wanted to make a difference in my college.

What are one or two of your proudest accomplishments in which your Penn State education played a role?

One accomplishment is publishing in a journal [Nature]. I did it with colleagues. We need to amplify the voices of researchers. Now my role isn't in research, and I look back on that and know I did it myself and with colleagues. It came from my education and experience. It's important that we amplify voices of unique researchers and have their input within the work that's done in agriculture and natural resources.

Another would be seeing these students excel. One of my former students works at the Bronx Zoo. I have other students who are doctors and lawyers. I'm so proud of them and proud of the fact I was able to help them. They did the hard work, but when they needed someone I am glad I was able to be there through support, tough love, and just general support.

What has been the best advice you've ever received?

My dad always told me to strive for excellence, don't settle for mediocrity. I have the word "Strive" tattooed on my arm as an ode to that.

Another quote I like is, "Success isn't final. Failure isn't fatal. It's the current to continue that counts." Especially the failure part. I've learned so much from failure than through success. Failure is not the opposite of success. It's the catalyst to success. Embracing failure is probably one of the best pieces of advice. You're not going to be successful in life without it. And with that, I am also not striving for perfection. I'm the antithesis to perfection. You can't be a scientist and strive for perfection. Perfection stymies and limits and when they [students] face failure, they often think it's the end of the world. Failure is just part of needed growth.

What collegiate advice or professional development tip would you give to a current student?

I like to tell them to get involved early and often. I did undergraduate research here, but I wish I would have pursued that opportunity sooner.

It thrills me to see students getting those kinds of experiences early on. While you're here, you have time to explore. Learn what you like and don't like to do. You need to be happy with what you do.

Getting involved also helps build your network.

Why are you proud to be a Penn State Ag Sciences alum?

We're making a difference at the local, regional, national, and global levels. We are responsible feeding and clothing the world, providing fuel, and building communities, both natural and human. I proud to be an alum because we get to do that and I've personally been able to do that across the East Coast of the United States.