Summer in the Skies: LU student spends summer conducting drone research, helping Oklahoma farmers
(This story was originally published in ‘E Roar Digital Magazine | Vol. 3 Issue 5 on Sept. 11, 2026)
by Ellie Melero
After spending two months on Langston University’s calm and quiet campus over the summer, Braylon Hood Colbert was looking forward to the start of the new semester. He looked forward to seeing his friends, and he was excited for the campus to buzz back to life as students returned to Langston and brought the LU energy with them. But as he walked to class in the early August heat, Colbert couldn’t help thinking the summer had flown by.
A senior agricultural science major from Mustang, Oklahoma, Colbert decided to stay on the Langston Campus and dedicate his summer to conducting research. His work took him around the state with LU’s Cooperative Extension and Outreach Programs as he learned how to apply his research to real life, which made this summer one he’ll never forget.
“It’s definitely been worth it,” Colbert said. “I wouldn’t have had the hands-on experience and the connections I made over the summer if it wasn’t for me coming out here and getting involved. So, it’s definitely been worth it.”
Colbert is no stranger to student research. After changing his major from agribusiness his junior year so that he could learn more about the science behind growing, Colbert earned a spot on Dr. Devi Kandel’s research team studying tomatoes and ginger. He helped tend the plants and input data, and he had the opportunity to share his work at the 2026 Association of 1890 Research Directors Symposium in the spring.
He enjoyed working with Dr. Kandel, but this summer, his research interests took him in a different direction.
Colbert joined the Sky Wranglers, LU’s drone precision agriculture program, in the spring after taking a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) class with Marcello White. The class was his first introduction to drones and their many uses in agriculture, and it inspired him to learn more. He joined the group, and after only a short time with the Sky Wranglers, Colbert realized there was a lot to learn.
“I understood that I’ve got to spend a lot of time understanding the new systems and how the drones operate and how the programming and GIS systems work,” Colbert said. “So, I just wanted to learn more and be more educated on what I was doing, so that’s why I decided to spend my time here over the summer.”
He spent the first half of the summer studying for his Part 107 exam to earn his commercial drone license. He passed the exam in June, and then he was able to spend more time out in the field doing hands-on research.
He joined Dr. Amlan Kumar’s research team. As part of the team, Colbert flies drones over fields and takes photos of the crops and landscape. When he processes the photos, the research team’s advanced GIS systems can calculate things like soil health and chlorophyll content to help the researchers make decisions about how to care for the plants.
“We’re using drones to pretty much develop a system to where we can detect stresses in plants before they show up,” Colbert said. “And we can also predict and increase the yield for tomato plants.”
In addition to his research with Dr. Kumar, Colbert had the opportunity to use the drones to help real Oklahoma farmers.
He joined extension specialists with LU’s Cooperative Extension and Outreach Programs to visit four farms around Oklahoma. They brought the drones and demonstrated them for the farmers and allowed the farmers to ask questions. Colbert helped explain how the drone program works and what opportunities it can provide.
The farm visits were one of his favorite parts of the summer.
“It’s connecting and networking with small farmers in Oklahoma,” Colbert said. “It’s been pretty fun.”
As Colbert gets back into the rhythm of classes, he plans to continue working with Dr. Kumar throughout the school year. He hopes he can take his research into a master’s program after graduation. In the future, he wants to start his own business with drones and agriculture to make precision agriculture more accessible to small farmers.
