Professional Development in Agricultural Education
- Nearly one in four respondents (22%) to the 2023 FFA Advisor Needs Assessment somewhat or strongly disagreed with the statement, “I have access to a variety of valuable professional development opportunities.”
- Almost half (47%) of respondents to the 2023 FFA Advisor Needs Assessment said budget/cost constraints have a great deal of influence on their decision to participate in professional development opportunities.
25 school-based agriculture educators received a Teacher Professional Development Grant from National FFA in 2023.
- 22 recipients are licensed educators, while one recipient is alternatively certified and two are special grant/permission or emergency certified educators.
- The 2023 recipients of the Teacher Professional Development Grants serve students in grades 6-12.
- The 2023 recipients of the Teacher Professional Development Grants serve student populations from 180 students to 2,012 students.
- The 2023 recipients of the Teacher Professional Development Grants serve 42 to 355 agricultural education students.
From my experience, I now make a more concentrated effort to give my ELL students better-translated materials whenever possible. I also try my best to use phrases and responses that I have learned from them in Spanish to hopefully make them feel welcomed and seen. My hope is that by taking more time and care in this area of teaching, that I can better continue to remove barriers from ELL students joining and becoming a part of my school’s agricultural and FFA programs.
Indiana FFA Advisor on Attending the Agriculture Future of America Service Learning in Puerto Rico