Since February 2025, two University of Maryland – College Park undergraduates, Stella Kahric and Grace Herschberg, have been working with Paul Goeringer, Elizabeth Thilmany, Drew Schiavone, and other faculty on the Maryland Agrivoltaic Demonstration Project and are actively working on the project during the summer as well.
Stella Kahric is a rising junior from Montgomery County majoring in Agriculture and Resource Economics and Government. Kahric is studying abroad in Amsterdam next semester and is excited to learn about controlled environment agriculture as well as other innovative and sustainable farming practices.
Kahric has been collaborating with Maryland Extension agents through interviews to better understand crop production in an agrivoltaic system. Additionally, Kahric has been collaborating with Grace Herschberg to compile information from Extension Fact Sheets and scientific journal articles to develop a framework to consider food production systems that may work within an agrivoltaic system in Maryland. This resource will feature a cropping table that will offer guidance on economic and agronomic factors of potential co-located cropping systems. Through this position, Stella is developing a stronger understanding of Maryland Extension services and their role in the community.
Grace Herschberg, a native New Yorker, is a junior majoring in Materials Science and Engineering and obtaining a Certificate from AGNR in International Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Grace is interested in the intersection of environmental engineering and sustainable agricultural practices. Grace has used past agrivoltaic research to assist in the viability assessment of various crops for agrivoltaics purposes. Through this position, Grace has gained a greater understanding of the relationship between extension services, local farmers, and consumers, and how those dependencies influence research practices. Grace has also learned more about agrivoltaic plot design and crop-energy production tradeoffs.
Grace emphasizes the importance of considering environmental factors in engineering design: “Agricultural engineering holds incredible potential, combining cutting-edge technology with the essential systems that sustain life. Few challenges are more meaningful, or more rewarding, than solving the real-world problems that feed the world. After all, engineering is about solving problems, and agriculture presents some of the most important ones we face today.”
