Area student ‘outstanding’ at Ohio State ATI

     Shelby Helm of Montezuma has been recognized as an outstanding student at the Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI). She graduated May 2 with an Associate of Applied Science degree in floral design and marketing.
   Helm achieved Dean’s List honors in all four semesters at ATI. She is the recipient of numerous scholarships, including the Wenz Director’s Scholarship, the Skou ATI Scholarship and the Emerald Necklace Garden Club Scholarship. She serves as president of Artistes de Fleur, ATI’s floral design club, and previously served as secretary. Helm was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, the international honorary for two-year college students.
     Helm completed an internship with Green Thumb Floral and Gifts, where she held the position of floral designer and had responsibilities in all shop operations, from designing to delivery.
     Helm participated in the 2019 National Symposium of the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD), where she also took part in the AIFD student design competition and earned a 5th place individual finish in the Sympathy and Interpretive Design categories. The competition attracts hundreds of competitors from floral design programs throughout the U.S.
      Following graduation, Helm will be getting married and relocating to North Carolina where she will pursue employment in the floral industry, with the eventual goal of returning to Iowa and managing a floral shop.
   Ohio State ATI is located on the Wooster, Ohio, campus of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES). In keeping with the Ohio State University’s land grant mission, ATI provides affordable, accessible associate degree programs that lead directly to employment or bachelor’s degrees.