Agriculture News

Alumni and current students from the WKU Meteorology program have found success over the past year with the National Weather Service (NWS) and other federal agencies. Five undergraduate students have received 2026 summer internships at NWS offices across the country. Kristen Ramey of Ashland, Ky., will intern at the Charlestown, W.Va. office. Tyler Tugman of Six Mile, S.C. secured an internship at the Columbia, S.C. office. Ryan Hiler of Lexington will spend his summer at the Paducah, Ky. office. The Louisville, Ky. office will host both Luke Marcum of Clay City, Ky. and Reagan Jarvis of Vine Grove, Ky. Jason Capouch of LaVergne, Tenn. will intern at the Nashville, Tenn. office.

“Nearly every graduate of the WKU Meteorology program who has gone on to work for the National Weather Service got their start with the summer internship program. Undergraduates are given the opportunity to tackle an independent research project as well as learn the NWS forecast process,” said Dr. Greg Goodrich, Meteorology Program Leader in the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences.

Former WKU Meteorology students have also found success with the NWS and other federal agencies. Recent graduate Luke Ferguson (BS Meteorology 2024, MS Homeland Security Sciences 2026) recently received a position with the NWS office in Amarillo, Tx. Sam Taylor (BS Meteorology 2024) was recently hired as a meteorologist with the Columbia Balloon Launch Facility, which is a NASA facility associated with the Goddard Space Flight Center in Palestine, Tx.

2012 Meteorology graduate Dustin Jordan became the first WKU Meteorology alumnus to be promoted to Meteorologist-In-Charge (MIC) at a NWS office when he started that role at the Jackson, Ky. office in February 2026. The MIC is the top leadership role at every NWS field office.

“Not all alumni have an aspiration for working at the NWS, but about 20% of all WKU Meteorology alumni have worked in some capacity for the National Weather Service. Dustin was part of one of the early graduating classes from WKU back in 2012 and has climbed the ladder from General Forecaster to Science Operations Officer to Meteorologist in Charge in a relatively short amount of time,” said Dr. Goodrich.

“The WKU Meteorology Program offers key experiential learning opportunities unmatched by most universities,” said Dr. Josh Durkee, Professor and University Meteorologist. “Whether it's severe storms forecasting, meteorological monitoring for the Chicago Marathon, providing emergency management services for the community, or developing exciting AI research applications in disaster science, our track record of student success is backed by our rigorous and robust career preparation."