Happy New Year from NAAE!

Whether you're returning to a classroom or an office after the holiday break, our team from NAAE is wishing you a prosperous and successful new year! 2023 is absolutely the year for you!

What will 2023 mean to you? We asked agricultural educator Hunter Morton who teaches at South Carolina Governor's School for Agriculture at John de la Howe what his intentions are for the new year.

Did you set a New Year’s resolution this year? If so, what is it?

My new year's resolution is to manage a better balance between having a successful agricultural education program and home life. 

What are you most looking forward to in 2023? 

I look forward to all of the FFA events and competitions that happen in the spring as we wind down the year to our banquet to celebrate all of our students' success.

What’s one thing you’ve learned about yourself in 2022? 

I learned that as you go through your teaching journey remembering your why is one of the most important reminders. This was important to me because teaching can be hard but remembering the reason I started teaching and my purpose inside and outside of the classroom will give me the motivation to keep pushing forward. 

Meet the 2022-2023 NAAE Board of Directors and Regional Secretaries

Congratulations to the 2022-2023 NAAE Board of Directors and Regional Secretaries! NAAE is governed by a board of directors elected by the NAAE membership represented by official voting delegates at the annual NAAE convention. Each NAAE region annually elects a regional secretary to assist the regional vice president. The six regional secretaries and important contributors to the NAAE leadership, but they are not members of the NAAE Board of Directors. Click here to meet the 2022-2023 NAAE Board of Directories and Regional Secretaries.

2022-2023 NAAE Board of Directors

President - Deanna Thies, MO

President-Elect - Eric Tilleman, MT

Region I Vice President - Kyle Stapleton, ID

Region II Vice President - Cameron Dale, OK

Region III Vice President - Shari Graffunder, WI

Region IV Vice President - Jeff Voris, MO

Region V Vice President - Bill Newsom, TN

Region VI Vice President - Aaron Geiman, MD

Past President - Stan Scurlock, FL

NAAE Chief Executive Officer - Alissa Smith

2022-2023 NAAE Regional Secretaries 

Region I Secretary - Sharon Metzger, AZ

Region II Secretary - Lauren Emerson, LA

Region III Secretary - Paul Aarsvold, MN

Region IV Secretary - John Hammond, KY

Region V Secretary - Nelson McCracken, GA

Region VI Secretary - Darla Romberger, PA

Save the Date for the 2023 NAAE National #TeachAg Day!

NAAE National #TeachAg Day is Thursday, September 21, 2023. NAAE is excited to share educator resources, lesson plans, and more in the months to come. The NAAE National #TeachAg Day Live Celebration will take place in Portland, Oregon.

NAAE Ag Ed Strand at ACTE National Policy

The NAAE Ag Ed Strand at the ACTE National Policy Seminar is held annually in Washington, DC. This event is a great way to get involved in shaping agricultural education legislative support through advocacy. This year's event will take place March 20-23, 2023. NAAE will pay the registration for one person per state. Click here to learn more about the event and to register.

NAAE is offering scholarships for preservice agricultural education majors to attend our Creating an Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable, and Accessible Program (IDEAP) Future Agriscience Teacher (FAST) symposium, which will be held March 1-4, 2023 in Lexington, Kentucky.

The Future Agriscience Teacher (FAST) Symposium is a professional development experience for preservice agricultural education majors which provides customized professional development, networking, and mentoring with current and future agriculture teachers from across the country. The IDEAP FAST will focus on creating an inclusive, diverse, equitable and accessible classroom environment, inquiry-based learning, professional development. and collegiality.

Applications for IDEAP FAST are due January 25, 2023. Those who wish to be considered must be current 2022-2023 NAAE student members. Visit our FAST webpage for more information and to access the application.

Attending a regional conferences is great way to connect with other agricultural educators, get involved in the organization and stay up to date on the latest news, events, and professional opportunities. For the most up to date information related to regional conferences, including agendas and registration information, click here.

Region I Conference

(AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, 

NV, OR, UT, WA, WY)

May 31 - June 2, 2023

Bozeman, Montana

Region II Conference

(AK, CO, KS, LA, NM, OK, TX)

June 19-22, 2023

Hot Springs, Arkansas

Region III Conference 

(IA, MN, NE, ND, SD, WI)

June 19-21, 2023

Alexandria, Minnesota

Region IV Conference

(IL, IN, KY, MI, MO, OH)

June 27-29, 2023

Archbold, Ohio

Region V Conference

(AL, FL, GA, MS, NC, 

PR, SC, TN, VI)

June 11-14, 2023

St. Augustine Beach, Florida

Region VI Conference

(CT, DE, ME, MA, MD, NH, NJ, 

NY, PA, RI, VT, VA, WV)

July 31 - August 2, 2023

Allentown, New Jersey

A vault is where we keep our most prized possessions and the things that are valued most. The Valuables Vault in the By Choice Newsletter is designed to equip teachers with jewels and valuable tools to help them carry onward in the profession. The Valuables Vault will highlight information, tips, and tricks that hold value in agricultural educators' professional and personal lives.

Unlock the Potential of the Month

#TeachAg sign-ups are now available! Tag students or professionals that you think should #TeachAg. When someone is tagged they will receive electronic communication about the BEST. CAREER. EVER. Teachers can sign up too! Stay up to date on current events within the profession, professional development opportunities, and all things #TeachAg! Click here to nominate a future agriculture teacher!

Combination to Happiness

Take a few moments to plan a trip. Maybe it is something from your bucket list or maybe it is a day trip to a nearby place you’ve been wanting to visit. Regardless of if it is a day trip or a two-week adventure, give yourself something to look forward to. Planning something will give you inspiration, motivation, and allow you to give yourself a well-deserved treat. As a member to NAAE, you receive a 15% discount at the following brand hotels: Comfort Inn®, Comfort Suites®, Quality®, Sleep Inn®, Clarion®, MainStay Suites®, Econo Lodge®, and Rodeway Inn®. Log in to the website and visit your MyNAAE page for the discount code.

The Agricultural Education Magazine

The Agricultural Education Magazine is a professional journal for agricultural education published under the sponsorship and control of an editing-managing board of professional educators in the field. The publication serves teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, teacher educators, supervisors, administrators, and others interested in agricultural education.

The latest edition of The Agricultural Education Magazine, focusing on Envisioning the Future of SBAE, is now available. Read it here.

My Local Cooperative Learning Modules 

The National Association of Agricultural Educators is working in partnership with the CHS Foundation to offer engaging and inquiry based instructional materials that have everything you need to deliver quality instruction on the cooperative business model, the impact of cooperatives on the community and cooperative career opportunities. The modules are yours to use and come with everything you need; materials list, teacher notes, handouts, presentation tools, assessments and more. Click here to access the modules.

Follow My Local Cooperative on Social Media 

Make sure you are following the NAAE My Local Cooperative social media platforms for agriculture cooperative career profiles, agriculture cooperative facts and ways to access My Local Cooperative workshops, toolkits and grants. You can follow My Local Cooperative on Facebook and Twitter.

My Local Cooperative is an initiative of the National Association of Agricultural Educators with funding support from the CHS Foundation.

Calendar  

January 13-15 - NAAE Facilitator Training Academy in Lexington, Kentucky

January 16 - NAAE Office Closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January 18 - 19 - NAAE All-In Staff Meeting in Lexington, Kentucky

January 25 - NAAE IDEAP Future Agriscience Teacher Symposium Applications Due

January 30 - NAAE Award Applications Available Online

February 1 - National Agriscience Teacher Ambassador Applications Open

February 10 - Ag Ed Strand at ACTE NPS Registration is Due (One person per state)

February 10-12 - NAAE Board of Directors Meeting in Lexington, Kentucky

March 20-23 - Ag Ed Strand at ACTE National Policy Seminar in Arlington, Virginia

June 30 - 2022-2023 NAAE Membership Year Ends

December 2022 Impact and Engagement Overview 

16,899 Twitter followers/12,463 total tweets (all NAAE accounts) 

24,540 Facebook followers (all NAAE accounts)

7,047 Instagram followers (all NAAE accounts) 

8 email campaigns were sent totaling 32,021 unique sends with an average 57% open rate