2K18 NAAE Convention Highlights

In November the Pennsylvania Association of Agricultural Educators (PAAE) had several members receive awards at the 70th National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE) Convention in San Antonio, TX as well as other members from the organization attend to aid in directing the national association for the next year. 

The members of PAAE had also participated in professional development focusing on agriculture, sessions on building partnerships between agricultural educators, agribusiness leaders, and policy makers. Our award winners from PAAE were Meagan Slates receiving the Outstanding Early Career Educator Award and Janae McMichael receiving the National Teacher Turn the Key Award. 

Meagan Slates gets her drive by student success in and outside the classroom. She utilized technology and experiential based learning to make her daily instruction interactive. Along with experience based learning, Meagan makes her courses engaging, rigorous, and model job expectations. Meagan currently serves on the Policy Committee for both NAAE and PAAE, and has attended the National Policy Seminar in Washington D.C. to advocate for career and technical education. 

Janae McMichael is a strong supporter of the three-circle model for Agricultural Education, she actively searches for ways to incorporate the three components in a way to create contextual, inquiry-based, and engaging learning experiences for her students. Janae is devoted to be a lifelong learner and does her best to seek out opportunities to grow as an educator, advisor, team member, and industry representative.

Penn State University also had members from #PSUAgEd19 cohort at the convention to experience professional development at the national level as well as network with future colleagues. Three Penn State students received the Upper Division Scholarship from the NAAE, Victoria Herr, Ryan Rupert, and Lisa Boltz. Penn State University was also named Region VI Outstanding Postsecondary Agriculture Program. The faculty at Penn State, Dr. Daniel Foster, Dr. John Ewing, and Dr. Kevin Curry, provide their students with current methods and how to effectively use them. The curriculum utilizes eight core courses to prepare teacher candidates for their future career.

Congratulations to all award recipients, and we hope that the convention provided you with many new and innovative ways to lead your classroom and exceed expectations.

Luke Kerstetter

Communications Team Member

Twitter Handle: Luke_Kerstetter

Agricultural Education Student Teacher 2020

Meagan Slates Receives National Award

Congratulations Meagan Slates! A Penn State Agriculture and Extension Education alum (#psuaged14) has received an Outstanding Early Career Educator Award from the National Association of Agriculture Educators (NAAE). She will be recognized at the NAAE Convention in San Antonio, TX in November.

Ms. Meagan Slates is currently teaching at Penn Manor High School in Millersville, PA. Meagan had completed her student teaching internship at West Perry High School with Ayla Miller #psuaged10 and John Hines #psuaged04. She attended Fort Cherry H.S. with Ms. Jodie Hoover #psuaged95 as her Agriscience Teacher.

Meagan is encouraging her to continue to be the best educator she can be for her students. She is always looking for new ways to advance her curriculum, getting students involved, and help them better themselves to be productive and successful members of society. "The best part about being selected for this award is the opportunity to attend NAAE conference network with other agriculture educators from across the US and attend workshops from both NAAE and ACTE where I can continue to grow and learn." Meagan enjoys watching her students find their passions, develop their stories, and achieve their goals. She teaches mostly freshman so she is just now seeing her first group of freshman graduate, and enter the workforce or go into a post secondary education. "Some students have come back to tell me about their experiences or have shared them with me on my professional social media platforms so it’s amazing to see where they are and what they are doing."

Her experiences as a teacher have provided her opportunities to grow and learn. She is thankful for the community of teachers she is friends with that she can collaborate and brainstorm with. Meagan's advice is, "New teachers should stretch themselves to try new things but don’t give up if it doesn’t go as planned, readjust and try again tomorrow or next time. It DOES get easier!"

Congratulations Meagan on your accomplishments and your award! We are proud of the positive impact you have made so far, and we are excited to see the impact you make throughout the rest of your career!

Luke Kerstetter

Communications Team Member

Twitter Handle: @Luke_Kerstetter

2020 Agriculture Education Student Teacher

Checking In With #psuaged14, Meagan Slates

West Perry Student Teacher
Meagan Slates

This semester the members of #psuaged14 are completing their student teaching all across the state! This week we are checking in with Meagan Slates who is student teaching at West Perry High School to see how her classroom experience is going so far!

Meagan (@Meagan_PSU) grew up in Hickory, PA and attended Fort Cherry High School where she was a member of the H.G. Parkinson FFA Chapter. She chose to do her student teaching at West Perry High School for a number of reasons. The program includes two teachers and a variety of courses ranging from plant and soil science to Ag mechanics and wildlife. The school is also has a larger Ag department than where Meagan went to school and they also have a large and FFA chapter as well.

The variety of courses has been one of Meagan’s challenges but she wouldn’t change it at all. She stated “I love that I get to teach something so different every class period but it's a challenge when it comes to the topic I'm not an expert in. However I know that I always have the help of my cooperating teachers and that is awesome!”

Meagan and students welding ice cubes together!

While the job can have its challenges, the benefits definitely outweigh them. Slates’ favorite part of her student teaching experience so far is getting to see the students succeed and enjoy what they are doing. She also enjoys attending conferences with the FFA chapter and watching the young ninth graders come to class. The ninth graders are learning to weld and completing a feed scoop project. “The students love being in the shop and working on their projects. It’s so cool to see how many of the younger students are scared to weld but end up liking it!”

Meagan’s advice to future student teacher candidates is to “challenge yourself! Teach those subject areas you’re not confident in. During student teaching you have a cooperating teacher and a PSU advisor to help you…use them! Ask questions you’re not sure about and take chances.”

Meagan and her cooperating teachers Mr. John Hines & Mrs. Ayla Miller (Detwiler) of West Perry!
 Both are PSU Alums!

Keep up with Meagan and follow her student teaching journey on her blog:  http://agvocatingforthefuture.blogspot.com/

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog!

Laura Metrick 

Student Blogger

2014 Teach Ag! Avenger

@Its_Laura Beth

2014 Student Teachers (#psuaged14) reflect on their Micro Teaching Experience at Central Mountain

A front view of the high school. Photo Creds: Chris Knight,The Patriot-News

A few weeks ago the 2014 student teaching cohort traveled to Central Mountain Area High School to apply what they have been learning throughout the semester. It was an interesting time for most, being able to see what worked and what didn't work, with all the theories and practices we have been learning throughout the semester. During the three day teaching period, we approached the situation recognizing that we had free use of trial and error to see how our theories worked, and if they didn't, we would never have to go back there or see the students again. We have been working a lot this year to have a growth mindset. Part of that is to take what you did well and what you did badly and learn from it. Change the bad in the future and grow from the experience. Nothing is a bad experience; it is always a learning experience that can help push you in the right direction.

As my cohort reflects on our experiences at Central Mountain, here are some of the things that we did well and others that we need to improve on.

Valerie Laub prepares for a class

Meagan Slates was happy with her student teaching experience! To challenge herself, she taught a welding class where students completed a hook project. Meagan started in the classroom the first day to really go over what they were doing and why its important. On the second day, she broke the class into three groups so they would be able to travel around the shop, complete their project in smaller groups and be safer. Meagan demonstrated at each station and asked many questions to make sure that the students really knew what was going on.  She could tell they were getting a little annoyed with all the questions, but she wanted to make sure everyone stayed safe. On the the third day, the students actually got to work at the stations and everything went well. Overall, Meagan was really happy with how her micro teaching experience took place and is excited for her future plans of student teaching. You can read her blog here.

Allison Hoover facilitating an activity outside

Allison Hoover ended her blog with some “concepts for success” such as: to set the stage by creating a felt need for the content, don’t second guess yourself, keep directions clear and concise, and to ask high order questions to get them thinking. She also said "teach for many years.. then maybe you’ll get it down".

I completed student teaching on Wildland Forest Firefighting. I had a class of nine senior boys and really enjoyed working with them. However, I did not keep them engaged enough. It was a very interesting experience as each day the class responded differently.  On the first day they talked too much, while on the second day, a student fell asleep.  On the last day, I had a really awesome bellwork and interest approach but lost their attention as the class went on. I learned many lessons for my future student teaching experience like carrying out lesson plans and teaching from PowerPoints, but especially preparation. Preparation is everything and can really help you out. I was really prepared with the stuff that I had since I brought some equipment that the firefighters really use, but I did not have enough engaging activities and I kept losing my students. However, this is a learning experience and it served its purpose as I learned a lot and I will improve in the future.

My student teaching cohort all had good experiences and learned a lot during our time there. We were able to learn from this experience and change things for our LifeKnowledge lesson at our cooperating school that we are student teaching at. Teaching is one of those things that just takes a while to become good at. It takes a while to come to a point that you feel comfortable and this is something that people really need to keep in mind. You cannot enter the field thinking you will be perfect right away. You need to give yourself room to grow.

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog!

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

Teach Ag! Society: Brand New Spirit!

Teach Ag! Society and ATA recruitment board

Teach Ag! Society, a newly formed club at the Pennsylvania State University, has kicked started the new year with a bang! With big events such as the Welcome Back Picnic and celebrating National Teach Ag Day on the 26^th of September, they are really making a splash in the College of Agricultural Sciences.

Teach Ag! Society was formed as a branch of the Alpha Tau Alpha, an honorary professional agricultural fraternity. In order to be a member of Alpha Tau Alpha, a student must be in their junior year and have a GPA above a 3.0. This greatly limited the number of students that could be involved in the club. Since students could only be full members for two semesters, Teach Ag! Society was born to solve the problem of the rapid turnover rate.

Teach Ag! Society is open to all majors and focuses on students interested in promoting and teaching agriculture. They participate in the Alpha Tau Alpha Conclave at National FFA Convention where students get to show off their knowledge in Quiz Bowl, Parliamentary Procedure, essay writing and debate about agricultural education topics. They also try to enhance what their members are learning in class during club time by discussing current topics in agricultural education.

Students at National Teach Ag Day brunch

The club started the semester with many goals to work towards throughout the year.  So far, members have helped out at CDE Day, hosted by CFFA, by running workshops for parliamentary procedure and prepared public speaking CDEs. The club recently celebrated the first ever PSU National Teach Ag Day, and are currently working on having students participate in the ATA conclave during National Convention in late October.

To celebrate National Teach Ag Day the club hosted a brunch in the ASI building.  About fifteen teachers from across the college came together to enjoy food and company and receive recognition for teaching the wonderful subject of agriculture. Meagan Slates, president of Teach Ag Society, was happy with the first year’s turnout, but hopes more professors will come out to celebrate with the club next fall. Another event hosted by the club on Teach Ag Day was a National Association of Agricultural Educators live webcast party.  During this event, the students indulged in lunch and snacks while following the live twitter feed of the #taglive13 while watching the panel on TV. Students enjoyed connecting with agricultural enthusiasts across the nation through the live feed. It was especially fun when Penn State was recognized nationally for some of their efforts through shout outs from the panel. Lastly, the club sent resources for Teach Ag Day to 160 agricultural programs in Pennsylvania, which included: a lesson plan for Teach Ag Day, a letter thanking the teacher, an invitation to National FFA Convention, a PSU Teach Ag Day poster, a social media postcard, and a link to the YouTube promotional video that a member of Teach Ag! Society created.

Students at the live Teach Ag webcast Party

The club is continuing to grow and provide their students with resources and fun activities. Upcoming events include Bonfire/social event on November 7th  and NATIONAL CONVENTION during the week of October 30^th where they HOPE TO BRING HOME SOME TROPHIES!

Teach Ag! Society’s mission is to promote the high standards and ideals of agricultural and extension education, to promote a bond between individuals in and those that have an interest in the world of agricultural extension education, to aid in the development of leadership, citizenship, and scholarship, and to cooperate in promoting the interest of the national organizations of Alpha Tau Alpha and Teach Ag!

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog!

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

2013 Teach Ag! Society Essay Event Results

Austin Young
 and 2013 student teacher Mackenzie McCollum

The Teach Ag! Society essay contest has been a part of the Pennsylvania State FFA Convention for the past four years. Students entering the contest must plan, design, and teach a lesson about agriculture to an agricultural class of their choice. Their teacher helps them with their lesson plan and guides them along the process of being a teacher for a class. The student then has to write an essay about their experiences during the process. To enter the contest the student submits their essay, lesson plan and pictures, which are graded by a group of selected individuals at Penn State. The top four contestants are announced before the State Convention registration then the final placing is announced at the Pennsylvania State Convention in June.

Facilitators at the Wii Night after the announcement of the winners

This past June, the contest saw a record number of participants with 45 applications sent in. Meagan Slates, Presidents of the Teach Ag! Society, was in charge of the essay contest this year. She comments that “A lot of the feedback that was given in the essays was that the students really looked up to their teachers and wanted to give it a try. I was surprised at the repeat number of participants from last year. With the help of their teachers most of the students really enjoyed teaching a class. All the students essays were great and choosing a winner was really difficult!” Meagan is a senior in Agriculture Education and as she enjoys advocating for agricultural education, she thinks that getting students excited about teaching is really important.

Some of the students entered the essay contest because they wanted the experience teaching or they wanted to see what it felt like to be in their teachers shoes. Regardless of the reason the students entered the contest, they definitely learned a lot about the teaching process.

Austin Young teaching the class

Austin Young, from Central Columbia High School is the first place winner this year. This is an excerpt from his winning essay:

“Agricultural education is vital to our nation’s youth because it teaches students 21^st century thinking skills which will aid them in being more employable in today’s increasingly competitive career market. In order for one to realize how agriculture affects every facet of society, agricultural literacy at an early age is essential. That is why society needs innovative, agricultural educators within our school systems.” 

Austin said that entering the contest gave him an opportunity to explore the career and was supported by his teachers Mr. Doug Brown, Mr. Curtis Turner, and his student teacher at the time Ms Mackenzie McCollum. Winning, he said has “reassured me that the career of being an Ag educator is one of the most important jobs in a society that would not be able to make it through one day without agriculture.” He also pointed out again that there is a shortage of agricultural educators nationwide and the need for Ag educators is more important now than ever. “ That is why this contest is so important. It gives students the opportunity to see what it is like to be an agricultural educator, which will hopefully propel them into a career of teaching America’s youth about agriculture.”

Katie McLaughlin and Victoria Herr in their
Teach Ag! shirts from the essay contest.

Victoria Herr, a senior at Penn Mannor High School, entered the contest because she wants to be an agricultural teacher some day. She thought that by entering the contest she would get a good feel for what being a teacher requires from an individual. “This contest taught me a lot about the skills needed to be a teacher such as writing good lesson plans, keeping the students engaged, and being prepared to answer any questions they may have. It also taught me that not all students are on the same learning level and as an ag teacher you must ensure that everyone is following along at a good pace for themselves”. 

Another student, Katie McLaughlin from Juniata High School entered the contest because at one point she had wanted to be an agricultural teach but her plans have changed. Although Katie will not be a teacher she will “always be teaching in the form of avocation.” Katie also said that the contest taught her a lot about what agricultural teachers do. Her teacher at Juniata is a part of a one teacher program with 110 kids to keep track of. She also has 11 different classes to teach in an 8 period day, all with different lesson plans. “I believe all teachers face challenges and we as students need to realize that our teachers truly want what is best for us. The essay made me realize how much Mrs. Morgan cares and it taught me to say thank you for everything she has done for our program.”

The top four winners of this years event were:
1st Place Austin Young, Central Columbia HS,
2nd place Amber Gabel, Newport High School,
3rd Place Lisa Boltz, Northern Lebanon High School, and
4th Place Victoria Daltroff, North West Area High School.

Meagan Slates wishes to continue increasing the contests and hopes to break the 45 entry record next year. Please keep an eye out to be ready to participate and apply next year! The Nation Needs You!

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog!

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

Two National Teach Ag Ambassadors for Consecutive Years! WE ARE...PENN STATE!

Meagan and Jillian at National Convention,
 one could say they are passionate for FFA

PSU² AGAIN!

Two Penn State students were chosen to be Teach Ag Ambassadors for National FFA, for the second year in a row! Meagan Slates and Jillian Gordon are two out of 11 students across the country that will be talking to high school students at the National FFA Convention about majoring in agricultural education.

The purpose of the campaign is to increase awareness of the need for more agricultural teachers. Their is a critical shortage of teachers across the nation, a crisis that has been acknowledged in public comment by both the USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and the USDE Secretary Arne Duncan. In the next three years, there are more than 700 agricultural teachers expected to retire. There are also new programs opening up that are in need of teachers to fill their positions. Every student deserves the opportunity to be engaged in a outstanding agricultural education program and the agriscience teacher is the most important element to the success of a secondary agricultural education  program. More information about the Teach Ag Campaign can be found at their website.

Applicants submitted an application, resume, references and an essay on their desire to be a National Teach Ag Ambassador. The next step involved a phone interview. The ideal candidates are friendly or easy to talk to and have a passion for agricultural education. Their duties include attending the nation’s largest annual gathering of students, National FFA Convention, and staffing the National Teach Ag booth in the National FFA Career Expo where more than 54,000 students, teachers, school administrators, former FFA members and guests tour the More than 350 exhibitors at the Expo. In addition, all the ambassadors will be paired with an agriculture teacher as a mentor who will help and guide them to plan, prepare and present an agriculture lesson at a Louisville area middle school, a great field teaching experience! Other opportunities or duties could be assigned as they arise!

Meagan Slates is a senior and going to student teach in spring 2014

Meagan Slates believes that AEE majors in college have the opportunity to pay it forward by really connecting with high school students and get them thinking about life after high school and the best major out there – agricultural education.  Meagan feels honored to be a part of the National Teach Ag Campaign. She highly enjoys interacting and teaching students. Her goal is to have every student that walks by the booth at national convention to at least consider the amazing career of  teaching agriculture. Meagan thinks this position will be a huge learning experience for her. It is bigger than anything that she has ever experienced as an educator. As a girl that does not typically leave the state of Pennsylvania, this position is out of Meagan’s comfort zone, but she looks forward to the challenge. Meagan went with the PSU Teach Ag Society to Arizona to visit agricultural educational programs and learned that there is so much more out there and so many programs to be involved in. Being involved in the Campaign will help her to become a better leader and educator. 

Jillian Gordon is a junior and will be student teaching in spring 2015

Jillian Gordon is a veteran Teach Ag Ambassador. She had to re-apply the same as everyone else and made the cut again. She really enjoyed her first year as a Teach Ag Ambassador and with a year of experience under her, she will be able to take full advantage of the opportunity.  Jill is excited to have the chance to connect with other NAAE (National Association of Agricultural Educators) members around the country. It is important as an agricultural educator to network as much as possible in order to gain experience and become the best agricultural teacher she can be for her future students.  Jill said the position will be very similar to last year, although the structure of the program has changed since last year. The booth will be all new this year and they will receive a workshop day, so they really understand the purpose of the National Teach Ag campaign.

I know Meagan and Jillian will represent Penn State and our agricultural education program well. With Penn State² again, I hope it really becomes a continuing tradition to always have PSU students involved. Heather Pray, a girl that was a Teach Ag Ambassador last year with Jill, recently graduated this spring and is looking to go into working with youth through 4-H. 

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog! 

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

Pennsylvania FFA Kicks Off National FFA Week by “Sprouting Opportunities”!

PA FFA members get ready to start the conference.

Have you been celebrating National FFA Week?  The past two weekends FFA members from across the state of Pennsylvania attended the Agricultural Cooperation Establishes Success (ACES) conference.  Members had the opportunity to attend leadership workshops, show their moves on the dance floor, and even have an encounter with Teach Ag! at Penn State!  

Penn State lead a workshop called "Teach Ag" which focused on the big picture of agricultural education and how FFA members have a future inspiring students.  Agricultural education does not just happen in the United States; it happens worldwide.  It is important that we educate people not only in the agriculture classroom, but also use opportunities in the community.  Students also brainstormed ways that they can be advocate for agricultural education by sharing ideas on various events that we can do.  Some of the examples were: community gardens, teaching elementary students, and community Ag days.  We look forward to seeing some of these bright FFA members become possible agriculture teachers!

We were happy to have some of our dynamic AEE majors helping out with these workshops at the conference!  Those that participated were:

Caleb Wright, 2014 Student Teacher - University Park

Meagan Slates, 2014 Student Teacher - University Park

Quinn Cashell, 2014 Student Teacher - University Park

Olivia Murphy Sweet, 2016 Student Teacher - Mont Alto

Janae Herr, 2016 Student Teacher - Berks

Matt Dodson, 2016 Student Teacher - Mont Alto

So here are some questions...How are you going to inspire students?  How will you advocate for agricultural education?  How do you celebrate National FFA Week?  Please share your answers and ideas on our Facebook page, Teach Ag! at Penn State, and tweet us at @TeachAgPSU!

Happy National FFA Week!

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter @TeachAgPSU, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PSUTeachAg.

By: Matthew Dodson, 

Student Blogger

2013 Teach Ag Avenger

2016 Student Teacher Candidate

2012-2013 Penn State TeachAg! Avengers

Congratulations to the 2012-2013 
Penn State Teach Ag Avengers!

(From left to right): Megan Slates, Caleb Wright, Jillian Gordon, Janae Herr, Matt Reutlinger, and Matt Dodson

Avengers??  No it is not just a movie!  This team of individuals are eager to represent the Agricultural and Extension Education major at Penn State.  What is their mission you may ask?  It may not be to protect the world from a race of alien invaders.  However, some would argue that it is still imperative to our future.  

THE MISSION:  

The mission of the Penn State Teach Ag Avengers is to cultivate awareness for agricultural and extension education.

Unfortunately, it appears that inn today's world the majority of people across the world have an unclear view of what agricultural and extension education really is all about.  Some individuals say, "They teach that in our schools?" or "What does that even mean?".  This must be changed if we are to educate society on the importance of agriculture in everyday life.  Who better to do it then 6 highly motivated Penn State students??  How do these Avengers hope to accomplish this mission?

THE VISION:

Through our passion as positive agents of change, Penn State Teach Ag Avengers will empower individuals through involvement in agricultural and extension education; inspiring them to discover their career potential to influence and participate in the future of agriculture.

Talk about a vision!  If you are a current AEE major, or you are interested in finding out what your future may look like as an agricultural educator, be sure to talk to these individuals to see how you can be a part of positive change for the future.  Discover your potential!

Caleb Wright, Junior, 2014 Teacher Candidate - cjw5251@psu.edu
Megan Slates, Junior, 2014 Teacher Candidate - mns5096@psu.edu
Matt Reutlinger, Sophomore, 2015 Teacher Candidate - mrr5297@psu.edu
Jillian Gordon, Sophomore, 2015 Teacher Candidate -  jag5750@psu.edu
Matt Dodson, Freshman, 2016 Teacher Candidate - mpd183@psu.edu
Janae Herr, Freshman, 2016 Teacher Candidate - kjh5370@psu.edu

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter @TeachAgPSU, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PSUTeachAg.

By: Matthew Dodson, 

Student Blogger

2013 Teach Ag Avenger

2016 Student Teacher Candidate