#psuaged17 member Miranda Kane (@mir_kane) hard at work in Mineral, VA

Ms. Miranda  Kane, #psuaged17 member and new teacher
at Louisa County High School in Mineral, Virginia.

2017 Penn State graduate and #psuaged17 member Miranda Kane (@mir_kane) is already putting her teaching skills to work after being hired by Louisa County High School in Mineral, Virginia.
During Ms. Kane's time at Penn State, she was involved all over the University, in The Blue and White Society, Chamber Choir, Christian Student Fellowship, Teach Ag Society, and Collegiate FFA. During her senior year her student teaching took place at Greenwood High School in Millerstown, PA with Mr. Michael Clark and Ms. Krista Pontius (@Krista_Pontius). During her time at Greenwood, she taught a wide range of subjects, including Plant Science, Small Gas Engines, Agriscience, Welding, Animal Bioscience, Food Science, and Leadership.

Ms. Kane and several of her Greenwood students.

One of the most interesting things she got to take part in at Greenwood was teaching a hydroponics unit to her plant science students, "which was a really neat experience because I had never done it before and got to learn about it alongside my students." Her students constructed miniature hydroponics systems, where they were able to test them under different fertilization methods and talk about quality and management of each. She said she also really enjoyed teaching her Leadership and Parliamentary Procedure classes, and was surprised to see how much her students were enthralled by parli pro.

The Ag program at Louisa County was started in 1948, after a merger of several schools in the area. In her new position, Ms. Kane gets the opportunity to teach Horticultural Sciences and Introduction to Animal Systems, with Greenhouse Plant Production Management added on in the spring. She has a helping hand as she teaches, being one of three agriculture teachers, joining the team of Ms. Machenah Simmons, a current N.C. State grad student, and Mr. Logan Horne, who is experienced in landscaping.

Miranda has a fairly unique opportunity at Louisa County; "Both of my teaching partners are new to teaching, and we all have such different experiences with FFA and agriculture, so we are all learning together! We are excited to grow the agricultural program and give a new name to FFA and Ag Ed here at Louisa County High School." She's especially excited to see how her students are able to utilize the greenhouse and the gardens around the school in her horticulture class.

Speaking of her new job and the journey ahead, she pointed out that she's located in a very small town, quite a bit away from home. She told us that she moved to Mineral without knowing anyone from the area, and anywhere else would have seemed to be a better choice, but, "Something felt right about where my journey has taken me and I wanted to grab it while it was there. I have been given all of the tools to be successful from my past experiences, and now I get to apply them." She continues, explaining that jumping into the unknown can be challenging and overwhelming, but also prove to be very rewarding.

We asked if Ms. Kane has any advice for those thinking about majoring in Agriculture and Extension Education, and she says, , "...if you have a passion for educating students, love working with agriculture, and want to make an impact in the lives of young minds, Agricultural Education is the career for you." To her, teaching her students doesn't feel like work at all. She encourages anyone interested in agricultural education to gibe it a try and see where they can go with it. "Agricultural Education truly is a rewarding profession and a wonderful way to make a huge impact in the lives of many."

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.

Hunter Kauffman, Student Blogger

Wildlife and Fisheries Science

The Pennsylvania State University

Email: hlk5120@psu.edu

Instagram: kauffman_hunter

Congratulations Nathan Repetz (@N8_Repetz); #psuaged17 member Hired!

A big congratulations to Mr. Nathan Repetz, #psuaged17 member and 2017 graduate of The Pennsylvania State University, who was just hired onto the educational team at Benton Area Middle-Senior High School in Benton, PA.

In Nathan's time at Penn State, he was heavily involved throughout the University, being a member of Teach Ag! Society (taking part in their yearly Domestic Study Away), the Teach Ag! Avengers, a brother of Alpha Zeta, and even on the Penn State Altoona Cross Country team.

When asked what the most interesting thing about his student teaching experience was, Repetz said, "I enjoyed challenging my own content knowledge in welding and plant science with eager students, top notch facilities, and veteran teachers. I also enjoyed getting to know the surrounding community through the program. It was those connections that brought me this opportunity." Nathan's case is a prime example of the value in the connections  made through the student teacher preparation program; Central Columbia High School is only about 20 miles away from his new home in the Benton School District.

Mr. Repetz teaching during one of his shop classes at Central Columbia. 

Mr. Repetz gets a very unique opportunity, joining alongside #psuaged11 member and fellow Penn State graduate Ms. Amanda Hack as he shapes a new Ag Mechanization program for the school. After Benton's previous tech-ed teacher left the school district, the school's shop facility and it's corresponding classroom have been sitting empty for the past year.

It's exciting to see new life brought to that learning space as Nathan fills the tech-ed role and gets to create his own unique blend of traditional shop classes and agricultural classes to meet the needs and interests of his students and the community. Mr. Repetz will be teaching a variety of subjects, including Power Machinery, Building Trades, Woodworking, Advanced Woodworking, Intro to Ag Mechanics, and 8th Grade Ag and Forestry.

When asked what advice he has for students looking to enter Ag Ed, Mr. Repetz replied that, "It really is a lifestyle choice, not a job. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. If you are at all interested in teaching Ag, there are great resources to explore the opportunities. You may find that this is for you, or you may find that it is not. That’s OK! If you don’t check it out you already made that choice, so don’t limit yourself!"

We asked Nathan about his new job, and the life ahead of him, and he said, "I'm right where I need to be." We're excited to see Mr. Repetz step into this new position, and are wishing him the best of luck as he moves forward in his career!

Hunter Kauffman, Student Blogger

Wildlife and Fisheries Science

The Pennsylvania State University

Email: hlk5120@psu.edu

Instagram: kauffman_hunter

Congratulations Matthew Rider (@mvr5027); #psuaged17 member Hired!

Matthew Rider and the Penn State Nittany Lion Shrine.

Matthew Rider has been hired by Stuart's Draft High School in Augusta County, Virginia. The recent graduate of The Pennsylvania State University, and #psuaged17 member, now has an opportunity to put his skills to the test and grow professionally and personally as the newest member of the agricultural education team at the school.

During his time at Penn State, Matthew took advantage of numerous opportunities, being part of the Penn State Soil Judging team and a brother of Penn State's chapter of Alpha Tau Alpha , the National Professional Honorary Fraternity for Agricultural Education. 

His initial teaching experience took place at Tyrone Area High School, where he taught for the Spring semester of 2016 under the advice of experienced teacher Ms. Tiffany Hoy (@hoytffany). Just one of the many interesting topics that Mr. Rider said he was able to teach at Tyrone was "...how to introduce yourself in a professional setting". 

Mr. Rider with one of his students.

In his new position at Stuart's Draft High School, he will be working alongside his cooperating teacher, Mr. Berry Gray. Although Matthew is stepping into an agricultural education program that's over 40 years old, and making quite a far move from his home in State College, he is more than optimistic about his new job, stating the famous quote from movie 'Forrest Gump', "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get." 

Stuart's Draft owns a small animal facility as well as a student garden that Mr. Rider will surely make use of. Some of the primary classes Mr. Rider will be teaching are Small and Large Animal Science, Greenhouse Production, and Floriculture. A piece of advice he leaves with students looking into agricultural education is that it's serious business, but you can't be too serious. 

We wish the best of luck to Matthew Rider as he steps into his new career, and look forward to seeing the impact he makes in the lives of his students!

Hunter Kauffman, Student Blogger

Wildlife and Fisheries Science

The Pennsylvania State University

Email: hlk5120@psu.edu

Instagram: kauffman_hunter

Throwback Thursday: Fives Years of #TeachAg Excellence

Throwback Thursday

Five Years of #TeachAg Excellence

To celebrate this weeks #TBT we are going back to look at the #TeachAg Excellence from the last Five Years of Student Teaching Candidates.  

#PSUAgEd17 :

#PSUAgEd17

Some fun facts:

• Taught 46 unique classes during the 2017 Spring Semester totally 106 units of instruction
• Has earned a total of 8 unique majors and minors

To learn more check out their own highlights blog:

http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com/2017/04/the-magnificent-seven-returns-psuaged17.html

#PSUAgEd16 : 

#PSUAgEd16

Some fun facts:

• Taught 71 unique classes during the 2017 Spring Semester totally 159 units of instruction
• Has earned a total of 11 unique majors and minors

To learn more check out their own highlights blog:

http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com/2016/04/psuaged16-returns-change-makers-see.html

#PSUAgEd15 : 

#PSUAgEd15

Some fun facts:

• Taught 102 unique classes during the 2017 Spring Semester totally 202 units of instruction
• Has earned a total of 16 unique majors and minors

To learn more check out their own highlights blog:

http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com/2015/04/psuaged15-returns-stories-on-making.html

#PSUAgEd14 : 

#PSUAgEd14

Some fun facts:

• Taught 104 unique classes during the 2017 Spring Semester totally 222 units of instruction
• Has earned a total of 17 unique majors and minors

To learn more check out their own highlights blog:

http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com/2014/04/celebrating-17-positive-agents-of.html

#PSUAgEd13 : 

#PSUAgEd13

Some fun facts:

• Taught 74 unique classes during the 2017 Spring Semester totally 159 units of instruction
• Has earned a total of 13 unique majors and minors

To learn more check out their own highlights blog:

http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com/2013/05/appreciating-terrific-thirteen-from-2013.html

George Dietrich, Student Blogger

Twitter Handle: @TheGeorge4H

#PSUAgEd18 Member

Cumberland Valley Student Teaching Canidate

Evelyn Zaleski (@CuteEvyAnn) HIRED!! #psuaged17 member hired at Davey Tree (@DaveyTree) in Virginia!

Evelyn Zaleski #psuaged17

Zaleski in the McGuffey greenhouse.

2017 Penn State Graduate, Evelyn Zaleski (@CuteEvyAnn) is quickly putting her Agriculture and Extension Education degree to work as she was recently hired at the Davey Tree Expert Company (@DaveyTree) in Gainesville, Virginia. Her official job title is the Mid-Atlantic Recruiting Coordinator where she will get to travel throughout her region consisting of Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia preforming her duties. Some of her duties require her to create and teach lesson plans at schools as part of her recruiting tactics; this is where her degree and classroom experience come in perfect!

Evelyn teaching Ag students.

As mentioned, Evelyn is a 2017 graduate of Penn State where she was an active member of the Teach Ag! Society, Collegiate FFA and Students for Cultivating Change. She also served as the President of the Penn State Grange. She completed her student teaching experience in Washington County, Pennsylvania at McGuffey High School under the guidance of her cooperating teachers Renee Cambruzzi (@cambruzzir) and John Leasure. While teaching an array of classes ranging from Greenhouse Management, Floral and Landscape Design, both Introduction and Advanced Mechanics, and several others she has gained unique experiences and made lasting memories. Some of the interesting things she was able to do during her experience was harvest honey from the bee hives the FFA cares for, host a Career Development Event, and attended a local 4-H meeting to interact with the community. 

When asked what her favorite memory of student teaching was, Evelyn said “I don’t have one specific favorite memory, but I definitely loved having my students dissect plants to learn the parts of a flower because they were so interested and excited to learn. I also was amazed when the students had a benefit dinner for another Ag teacher who was really sick. The kids and community came together to put on such a great event and were able to raise over $13,000.00 in just 6 hours! I also had such fun with my students, especially when they decided to try and do the mannequin challenge!” 

McGuffey student working on a
floriculture project.

Evelyn is originally from Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania so her new job will definitely take her from her hometown but she is excited to see new places and meet new people. While working at Davey Tree Expert Company, she will be meeting with managers from all over her region and getting to know the members of each crew. She will also be responsible for finding candidates for jobs and be in charge of their hiring process. While recruiting people to work for Davey, she will be traveling to career fairs, schools, and meeting people in the forestry industry to teach them of Davey Tree Experts and the career possibilities available. Evelyn has already been working for three weeks and says “I really enjoy meeting all these new and interesting people, the employees who are climbing trees are my favorite though.” This is probably because while attending Penn State, she was able to take a class on tree climbing and she ended up loving every day of that class. She also was drawn to this job because it is such a unique position where she is able to interact with all different types of people and it is an employee owned company which means she can use part of her salary to purchase stock and own part of the company; this is a great opportunity for a young college graduate! Davey Tree Expert is also very environmentally conscious. They have flooring that is made of all recycled materials, use natural lighting in the building, and all the water is filtered and recycled. 

Zaleski & Cambruzzi teaching a
 flower arranging class.

“My job is really cool! We are allowed to bring our dogs to work which makes for a great work atmosphere. We also have a green roof where we can eat lunch and we have walking trails behind the building that we are encouraged to use when we need a break from daily tasks! Between traveling to different crews and the other aspects of my job, I have only had to work in my office two times so far of my three weeks here!”

As Evelyn goes forth from Penn State, she would like to leave this advice for students looking to pursue a degree in Agriculture Education, “First of all dive in! Close your eyes and immerse yourself into whatever you are doing. And once you have worked hard and reached the finish line, take a moment to realize what an accomplishment you have made! This is a major where you never stop improving and learning, ever after you graduate! I may not currently be an agriculture teacher but I am still part of the PSU Ag Ed family and that is something that you can easily an honor that you carry with you for the rest of your life!”

Macy Fisher, Student Blogger

Twitter Handle: @macy_fisher

#psuaged18 member

2018 Selinsgrove Student Teacher



The 81st Annual Ag Ed Banquet: Celebrating #studentsuccess

Pennsylvania FFA State Treasurer Maddy Buss

On Tuesday April 25th Penn State Collegiate FFA, Teach Ag! Society, and Alpha Tau Alpha hosted the 81st Annual Ag Ed Banquet. The program featured greetings from Madeline Buss on behalf of the Pennsylvania FFA Assocation.

Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding

Keynote speaker,  Pennsylvania's Secretary of Agriculture, Russel Reading  talked about the importance of agricultural education and it's role in continuing to educate and feed the ever growing population.







To culminate another successful year of student achievements and organizational milestone, awards were presented to Collegiate FFA, Teach Ag! Society, and ATA members. Check out the night's award reciepients:

Collegiate FFA Awards

Outstanding Members-

Honorary Member- Terra Ingram

      

  

Graduating CFFA members

Teach Ag! Society Awards

2017 Teacher Candidates

2018 Student Teachers

Congratulations to all award recipients!  2016-2017 proved to be another successful year.  We are excited to see what the next year brings!

The Magnificent SEVEN: #psuaged17 still learning post student teaching experience

Searching the dictionary for the definition of lifelong learning, one would read:

"The provision or use of both formal and informal learning opportunities throughout people's lives in order to foster the continuous development and improvement of the knowledge and skills needed for employment and personal fulfillment."

The Magnificent Seven, #psuaged17 are exemplifying this practice.  While they have emerged from their Student Teaching Internship, and are only a few days away from being official Penn State University graduates, they continue to seek out learning opportunities.

On Wednesday, April 26, 2017 #psuaged17 joined the Berlin Brothersvalley Young Farmer Chapter to learn about adult agriculture education programs and the procedures to start a young farmer chapter within a school district.  The Berlin Young Farmers Chapter is currently the largest chapter in the Pennsylvania Young Farmers Association (PYFA) with 129 members.  Berlin membership includes forty-two couples and thirty-seven lifetime members of the PYFA.





                       
#psuaged17
also had the unique opportunity to meet with Berlin firefighters to learn about grain bin
entrapment, and utilizing a farm grain tube should an individual be trapped.  Seth Forry, Berlin paramedic lead the presentation.  All film and pictures used during the presentation were from the Keith Leydig Farm.  Mr. Leydig is the first assistant in the Berlin Volunteer Fire Department.
















The Magnificent Seven had a informative evening learning and engaging with the Berlin Young Farmers Chapter.  Thank you to Doyle Paul, and the Berlin Young Farmers Chapter for the warm welcome and hospitality!








Stay tuned to hear more about #psuaged17's exciting adventures through their Post-Internship experience.

Luke Kerstetter

Student Blogger

Twitter Handle: @lmkerstetter96

2020 Agricultural Education Student Teacher

Kayla Hack (@HackKayla) Hired! 2017 Teacher Candidate Hired at Honesdale High School

"I think Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.... because there are so many students that education, especially in agriculture or career and technical education truly does change the course of their life and even their families." 

Kayla Hack is originally from East Troy, Wisconsin, but she is here to stay in Pennsylvania as she becomes Honesdale's Agricultural Educator and FFA Advisor in Wayne County. Throughout her college experience Kayla has been involved in Teach Ag! Society where she had served as an officer for two years; Navigators Ministry; worked for National FFA as a facilitator; studied abroad and conducted undergraduate research in Costa Rica.

Kayla completed her student teaching experience at Pequea Valley High School in Kinzers, PA, in the heart of Lancaster County. She taught five different classes: Foods Unwrapped, Power Technology, Intro to Agricultural Mechanics, Ag Biology and Horticulture. While she was there she had the opportunity to do some interesting things with the students which included: Horticulture students preparing and hosting a workshop at The Factory Ministries for community members teaching flower arranging. The Factory Ministries empowers others to strengthen their community, and the students helped accomplished that with their workshop. The project was possible through a grant from the Pequea Valley Education Foundation. 

At Honesdale High School, Kayla will be opening up a brand new agricultural education program. The last time Honesdale had an agriculture program was in the 1960s. She will be required to build the program from the ground up. This includes curriculum to facilities, but she couldn't be more excited! The community and county are extremely supportive of the program and are giving her a helping hand in getting things started. She recently attended the Wayne County Economic Development Council Annual Dinner where she had the opportunity to meet agricultural leaders in the area.  Agricultural leaders are excited for the program to begin and ready to help in any way they can.  Honesdale agricultural program will be a general agriculture program where in the first year will feature Agriculture 1, a year long introduction to agriculture course with forestry, Foods Processing, Horticulture, and Animal Science. She is ecstatic to meet many community members and producers this summer as she moves up to Wayne County and meet the students in the fall.  Kayla states, "Starting a new program can be intimidating, but when you've been working hard and prepared and mentored well, it's every agriculture teacher's dream." A little fun fact about Wayne County Highlands is 75 miles from Manhattan, NY!

Congratulations Kayla on your recent position at Honesdale High School we wish you the best of luck starting this program!

 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.

Luke Kerstetter

Student Blogger

Twitter Handle: @lmkerstetter96

2020 Agricultural Education Student Teacher