What I Seek in a Cooperating Center

Hi everyone! The past few weeks have been incredibly busy with various agricultural education experiences! I recently returned from my spring teaching immersion in Minnesota with the GOALS program, and I'm excited to share more about that experience soon. 

In addition, the past few weeks have held a number of visits to agricultural education programs across the state of Pennsylvania as I go through the process of identifying a cooperating center, which will serve as the location for my student teaching internship starting in January of 2024. These visits have taken me to many incredible places, and even took me off the beaten path a bit too as seen here on my truck :).

It's often felt like life recently has been moving at 100 mph, and yet I am also doing my best to soak in this special time. I've looked forward to the student teaching preparation process for a long time now, and it has been exciting to finally get to do the visits and make plans for my student teaching experience. It's a fulfilling thing to see the hard work throughout college finally lead up to this point while also having the excitement of looking ahead at the journey to come.

As I have been gearing up for the process of selecting a potential student teaching site, several of my other friends studying education in other subject areas at Penn State have noted that my student teaching process is vastly different than their own - which is true! Due to the relatively small size of agricultural science departments and the fact that there are only about 150 schools with agricultural education in Pennsylvania (out of approximately 500 total school districts), the process generally requires more care and preparation than developing a student teaching placement for other core content areas. I am most grateful for caring faculty/staff and the broader agricultural education community who are so intentional in each step of this process to ensure it is a positive and successful experience.

In my introductory post, I briefly mentioned the three component model of agricultural education. As I look ahead to finding a place to student teach, my overarching goal is to find a school that does all three components well! The first piece is Classroom Instruction, which encompasses the courses and hands-on activities taught in an agricultural science department. The second component is Supervised Agricultural Experience projects (frequently called SAEs), which allow students to apply the concepts learned in the classroom in a student-led project of interest to them. During my time as an FFA member, some of my SAE projects included working in food service, building wildlife habitats, and growing Indian Corn. Lastly, the FFA Leadership component allows students to grow within the student organization as they participate in Career and Leadership Development Events, serve on officer teams, and more.

Alongside the three-component model, there are several other considerations which have helped me to navigate the cooperating center search process.

1. Geographic Region

During my student teaching experience, I am excited for the opportunity to work in an agricultural education program outside of home county and region. During my time as an FFA member, I gained a great deal of wisdom and experience in Lancaster County and the Eastern Region of PA FFA. In many ways, the eastern corner of the state will always be home, but I am excited to spend my student teaching placement gaining experiences in a new part of the state. As such, I have visited programs in the Northern, South-Central, and Western regions of PA.

2. Agricultural Courses

As I explore different schools, one of my most important considerations is related to the variety of agricultural courses taught at a school. I hope to student teach at a school where I can teach and observe a diverse set of courses with a comprehensive set of facilities. The most important aspect of course offerings is Agricultural Mechanics, which typically covers welding, small gas engines, electrical/plumbing, and more. My home high school did not have a shop facility, so this is a primary area where I need to grow during my student teaching experience. I am grateful for my AEE 349 course here at Penn State, as this is helping me build some basic skills before heading into the classroom.

In addition to Ag Mechanics, I hope to teach at a school where I can gain experience managing a greenhouse and other lab spaces. I enjoyed working in my home high school's greenhouse, but it is very different to be responsible for managing the space and directing student's use of it! I enjoy working in the greenhouse and would be very excited for the chance to teach in one while student teaching. If possible, I would also love to work with an animal science course, as most of my knowledge is based pretty heavily on theory rather than application. I have never raised or shown livestock myself, but I am eager to learn more :). 

3. Agricultural Educators

An additional goal I have is to student teach in a multi-teacher agricultural science department. Most programs around PA have either one or two ag teachers, and during this experience I hope to be placed at a school with two teachers. First and foremost, I would be excited about the chance to maximize my experience by working with and learning from two different educators! In addition, I would be glad to gain experience and insight into the dynamics of managing a two-teacher department. Co-teacher relationships are a critical part of a successful agricultural science department and FFA chapter, and I hope to learn from educators who I have observed to manage this relationship effectively.

In addition, I hope to work with at least one male agricultural educator during this experience. I had three female ag teachers during my time in high school, and I am forever grateful for their impact! While it may seem surprising, there has been a true shortage of male ag teachers entering the profession over the past decade. As a future male ag teacher, I am grateful for the opportunity to connect with a male mentor in this experience and build meaningful relationships and learn from the experience of my cooperating teacher.

What Now?

As I write this blog, I am also wrapping up my official student teaching application. This application will begin the official process of identifying my cooperating center! After my visits to potential sites are all completed and the application is submitted, I will interview with the Agricultural and Extension Education faculty and staff members, and together we will identify my placement in coordination with the cooperating teachers. 

Regardless of where I end up student teaching, I count myself fortunate to have met many incredible agricultural educators across several different programs. These past few weeks have been a good reminder of why I was originally drawn into this career field and this community. As I've visited these schools, I can't help but reflect with pride about the opportunity I have to work alongside people who truly make a difference. 

I've watched teachers show up for the students who walk through their classroom doors - working through the hard challenges our public high schools and their students face and doing it all with a smile and determination to have students leave the classroom better off than when they entered. It's often a thankless job that often seems to garner more criticism than gratitude, but I'd encourage anyone with doubts about the future of our students to see first-hand the impact caring and upstanding public educators make on a daily basis even when it's far from easy. Public schools - and specifically the many agricultural science wings within them - hold a special place in my heart, and its an honor to be part of this community.

When I think about the many people who have invested in my life to help me get to this point, I'm humbled and filled with appreciation. If you're reading this, you've likely been one of those people who has cheered me on at one point or another - and for that I say thank you! Although these words aren't my own, the chorus of a song by one of my favorite musical artists has become my hope and prayer for my future students...and soon I get to know who they are! I look forward to sharing that with you soon. 

"May they say you were

Gracious in the fight of it 

Humble at the height of it

Choose to love in spite of it all, 

And when you're questioning the why of it

Rise up in the light of it

I'll be by your side in it all, cheering you on"

Cheering You On - For King and Country

With gratitude,

Brandon