After the start of the spring
semester, an annual event is the deciding of our new Teach Ag! Avengers team. The
Avengers serve as the face of the Agricultural and Extension Education major at
Penn State, taking part in recruitment activities, facilitating leadership
development events, talking with prospective AEE students, and promoting agriculture wherever they go.
A great example of the work they do
can be seen at the currently ongoing annual Agricultural Cooperation Establishes Success
(ACES) conferences with The Pennsylvania FFA. This weekend is the last of three weekends they've been running workshops for FFA members in attendance.
Their workshop this year,
entitled, "The Avengers Express to Career Success", teaches
students about the potential career paths that lie ahead of them and
gives students and opportunity to ask questions and gain insight into their own
career paths. Our Avengers also travel to numerous events throughout the Commonwealth and conduct workshops at the Pennsylvania FFA State Convention every June.
We're excited to have such a dynamic team of students representing the Agricultural and Extension Education program! Our Teach Ag! Avengers are prepared to show future students not only the value of an AEE degree, but to show the importance of agriculture as a whole, and the countless opportunities that await students here at Penn State! Be on the lookout for our Avengers at an event near you!
Here are your 2019 Teach Ag! Avengers
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| Erin Langdale (@ItsErinLangdale) |
Erin Langdale
#psuaged20
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to have the
opportunity to share my passion for teaching agriculture with others! I'm also
excited to work alongside my friends and see them shine as well."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to teach Ag because I wholeheartedly believe that
agricultural education can change lives. I know I wouldn’t be the same person
without it. Teaching Ag is a way that I can impact students, and teach them
about an industry that is vital to our society."
Fun Fact:
"A fun fact about me is that I
have a twin brother! His name is Jeremy, he’s currently student teaching (and
studying to be a history teacher), and regardless of the fact we’re twins, we
don’t look alike!
 |
| Luke Kerstetter (@Luke_Kerstetter) |
Luke
Kerstetter
#psuaged20
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avenger team because I believe I can create a positive difference in
both high school students as well as in my teammates. I am excited to work with
a team of great people who all share a passion for agricultural education."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to Teach Ag because I
want to be that agent of change for students like my high school agriculture
teacher was for me. I also want to inspire future generations of students to
take an interest in agriculture."
Fun Fact: "I enjoy hunting, especially during deer season
(archery, rifle, and muzzleloader). Whenever there is a chance to go I take
it."
 |
| Jessica Barnhart (@jessiebarny7) |
Jessica Barnhart
#psuaged20
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to be a part of
the team because I want students to discover agriculture education and find
their passion through it. I want to share opportunities and experiences and
help students ease their way into our Teach Ag community."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to teach Ag because of
the impacts and growth that I had experienced myself in high school from being
a part of the Derry FFA chapter. I want to give back to the kind of
program that helped me find myself, and I want to support students in their
journey."
Fun Fact: "An interesting fact about me is I am an entomology
nerd! I teach programs and do table events that feature my insect collections
as well as my live critters like tarantulas, hissing cockroaches, scorpions,
and more! I love insect education and once I get going, it's hard to get me to
stop!"
 |
| Justin Kurtz (@JustinDKurtz) |
Justin
Kurtz
#psuaged22
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"Because this gives me an opportunity to represent something bigger than myself that I have a great deal of passion for Agricultural Education. Additionally, I look forward to learning how to work with different individuals."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"Because as an Ag teacher you
teach more than classroom content. In fact, you teach students how to enhance
the skills they will use throughout their professional and personal
lives."
Fun Fact:
"I am color blind lol."
 |
| Killian George (@KillianGeorge) |
Killian George
#psuaged22
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to interact with and educate students about the
industry and agricultural education. I believe that knowledge is power,
therefore I am excited to have the opportunity to empower students."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to teach Ag for many
reasons. One of those is because teaching agriculture is never the same day
twice; one day you could be dissecting a chicken wing and the next day you
could be testing weld strengths. I want to teach Ag because I want to be the
advisor one day that I had in high school, one who pushed and pulled me to my
fullest potential and still continues to cheer me on. I feel that the
agricultural industry is one that is ever-evolving. I want to be part of the
team who not only advocates for the industry, but also a part of the team who
continues to make the industry better."
Fun Fact:
"A fun fact about me is, my
dream is to adopt an elephant and name her Nelly."
 |
| Nathan Moyer (@nathanmoyer_22) |
Nathan
Moyer
#psuaged22
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to be a Teach Ag
Avenger because I can continue to connect with students and teachers across
Pennsylvania, spreading word about Penn State and teaching of the importance of
agricultural education. I hope to recruit students to attend Penn State and get
involved in the Teach Ag community."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to teach agriculture
because it is such a valuable industry. The world needs agriculture, and
students need agricultural education, both to prepare them for the future, but
also to help them find their place in the world. Ag Ed allows students to find
a passion and pursue it, to build a career for themselves, rather than just a
job. I want to have the same impact on my future students as my Ag teachers did
on me."
Fun Fact:
"One interesting fact about me
is that I volunteer at an animal rescue that takes in a variety of animals. I
have worked with animals such as alpacas, skunks, kangaroos, porcupines, and
alligator snapping turtles"
 |
| Megan Royer (@megyyy21) |
Megan Royer
#psuaged21
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to be apart of
the 2019 Avengers team because I will have the opportunity to represent our
awesome major with students who are just as passionate about our major as
myself!"
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to become an Agricultural
Educator because I would like to help my students find their passions as well
as their confident all well having fun just as my Agricultural Sciences
teacher did for me."
Fun Fact:
"A unique fact about myself is
that I am the only person in my family with blue eyes"
 |
| Thomas Gabel (@Gabel_Thomas) |
Thomas
Gabel
#psuaged22
Why are you excited to be a part of
the 2019 Avengers team?
"I am excited to serve on the
2019 Avenger Team because we have the opportunity to advocate for a career that
empowers the next generation of leaders, agriculturalists, and citizens. We get
to travel and connect with amazing students, all the while being able to spread
the positive word of agriculture and agricultural education, and hopefully
recruit some future agricultural educators to come to Penn State! But above
all, I am excited to work with my fellow Avengers as we look to be a positive
influence on students all across Pennsylvania."
Why do you want to teach Ag?
"I want to teach ag in order to
have a positive influence on the next generation of students, and to be able to
help them find a career that fits their passions. Agriculture is incredibly
diverse and has many pathways to offer students, my hope is that I can inspire
them to find one that fits them, and help them grow as a person along the
way."
Fun Fact:
"I used to be an avid fantasy
baseball player (I'm talking 30 team leagues, we play all 162 games using an
online program, intense stuff), but have not participated at this level since
2016. However, the last year I did play I had both Mike Trout and Paul
Goldschmidt, both among the best in the MLB, so I was pretty happy with where
my team was at that point."
"Welcome to New York, It's been waiting for you..." - Taylor Swift. One of the many jams we listened to on the way to New York to visit an outstanding high school and elect New York FFA's National FFA Officer Candidate. 
Our second stop was in Syracuse, NY at the New York State Fair Grounds. On Friday evening we had orientation/training on the process of selecting New York's NOC. Once we had finished up our training, Mr. Hughes treated us to a fantastic dinner at Dinosaurs Bar-B-Que. Absolutely wonderful food, check it out if you are ever in New York! 
Saturday was the big day! We held interviews with candidates for the majority of the day. Throughout the time we spent interviewing and deliberating, we all had ah-ha moments of what it is like running for a National FFA Officer position. "I ran for PA NOC in 2016, and I now realize why I would not have made a great candidate that year," Luke expressed. We all had learned a lot through this process and opened up our eyes to what we might experience as we train future state officers/national officer candidates. 
