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5-Year Growth in Georgia’s Agricultural Education Programs
Source: 2011-2016 Georgia Agricultural Education Annual Reports
+10%
+14%
AGRICULTURE TEACHERS HIRED
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS
310
41,117
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOLS
MEMBERS OF FUTURE FARMERS OF AMERCA (FFA)
According to the Georgia Agricultural Education Recruitment and Retention report, during the past ve years, there were 196 new agriculture teachers hired in Georgia (average 39 per year), with 83 graduates from University
of Georgia (UGA) and six graduates from Fort Valley State University (FVSU). The remaining hires were from institutions outside of Georgia, industry transition, and other educators.
“If you look at surrounding states, Kentucky has eight ag teacher education programs, and Tennessee has ve,” said Bridges. “Adding another institution that can produce ag teachers is critical, especially with the growth we are seeing in Georgia. I believe Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) is in a great position to help meet the demand for more quali ed agriculture teachers and will do an excellent job in preparing them for success.”
ABAC Moves Forward in Agriculture Education
Dr. David Bridges, president of ABAC, has known for many years that Georgia would need more agricultural education teachers to meet the industry’s workforce demands.
In 2016, President Bridges felt it was time to add agricultural education
to ABAC’s current bachelor’s degree o erings in agriculture, environmental horticulture, natural resource management, biology, business and economic development, nursing, and rural studies.
With approval from the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, ABAC has started the process to establish a Bachelor of Science in agricultural education, with plans to accept students to the program during the 2017-2018 academic year.
“The State of Georgia has had a de cit of vocational agriculture teachers for 30 years,” said President Bridges. “Thanks to the positive vote from the Board of Regents, we are now in a unique position to provide a solution to that problem.”
Dr. Jerry Baker, dean of the School of Agriculture and Natural Resources at ABAC, said that the primary goal of the degree is “achieve and maintain
a level of graduate production and job placement to contribute to the sustainability of agricultural education programs in Georgia’s middle and high schools.”
Providing more opportunities for middle and high school students to have exposure to agriculture and the career possibilities will help Georgia meet its agricultural workforce demands.
“I think it is incredibly important for ag programs in the middle schools,” Baker said. “We need to begin the process of changing the perception as to what agriculture is and its importance. It does not matter what career path the student takes; agriculture is going to play a critical role in their future.”
According to Baker, ABAC has approximately 100 students who have expressed an interest in pursuing an agricultural education major.
“We recognized that we had students that were coming to ABAC with the intention of staying two years and then transferring to UGA or FVSU where they could receive an ag education degree,” Baker said. “We also found that a growing number wanted to stay at ABAC and in
some instances would change their major from ag education to another agriculture major like agribusiness or livestock production or any number of ABAC’s other four-year degrees.”
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