Ag. education faces deficit in teachers
A deficit of teachers appears to be one of the biggest challenges facing agriculture education, according to one local Future Farmers of America “FFA” chapter.
Jay Davis, advisor for the Smryna High School FFA, says there was a nationwide shortage of about 400 agriculture teachers between the 2014 and 2015 school year. Those numbers are from the National Association of Agriculture Educators (“NAAE”).
“Just this past summer in Delaware alone, we had eight teacher shortages in different programs which because we’re a small state, it can be a challenge to fill but sometimes we bring in teachers from other states,” explains Davis.
Smyrna FFA is one of more than 40 in the state of Delaware.
According to Davis, being an Ag teacher takes a lot of commitment and extends well beyond the school-year calendar.
He says the average salary of an Ag teacher does not match the effort, which could make recruitment and retention difficult.
“There’s competitions, there’s CDE’s which are known as career development events, some of which are happening at the Delaware state fair but they’re actually all around the year,” he says.
At a presentation at the Delaware State Fair on Monday, the Smyrna FFA discussed the deficit.
Stewart Ramsey, president of the New Castle County Farm Bureau, was a judge in the presentation.
While he says the high school group did a good job explaining traditional agriculture careers, there’s room for improvement.
“They don’t need to make a hard distinction about the teacher’s side and the business side, because teachers that have a business ear…and understands really what it takes from a dollars and cents standpoint, really that’s the bottom line,” Ramsey explains.
As for Davis, he says the fix in the deficit could be lie in the hands of more community involvement and support.
“We have to have those folks be able to advocate for us and be able to lobby,” he explains.
According to Davis, Smyrna FFA has shared this presentation with a few local rotary clubs and farm bureaus in the Kent County area. The group plans to present at the national FFA convention in Indianapolis this October.
