University of Idaho Agricultural Education, Leadership, and Communications

Mountain Home High School Ag instructor, Kya Vines, shares the unique experiences that led her to pursue a career in agriculture education and why she loves this profession.  I am a proud alumnus of Mountain Home High School (MHHS) where I have returned to start an Agriculture Science program. In the fall of 2017, I taught the first agriculture class for MHHS. I teach Personal Skills Development, Introduction to Livestock Industry, Agriculture Mechanics, Zoology Fish and Wildlife, Agriculture Welding, Advanced Agriculture Welding, and Agriculture Fabrication. I am very proud to teach agriculture and be an FFA advisor. Though I did not go through an agriculture program in high school myself, I found I was destined to be an agriculture teacher. It wasn’t until I toured the University of Idaho my senior year did I know that being an agriculture teacher was even a career! This job takes dedication and perseverance but is the most rewarding project I have ever been a part of....

Katie Cooper Salmon High School My name is Katie Cooper and I teach at Salmon Jr-Sr High School in Salmon Idaho. This is my 10th year teaching here. I went into the field of education because I love working with other people. I started my career working with college-age students, and then had the opportunity to come back and teach in a high school setting. That has since expanded into students ranging from 7th to 12th grade entering my room at any given point during the day, as well as still working with adults on various professional development opportunities and in community education venues. I still find it very fulfilling to interact with others and allow them to learn things that are interesting and relevant to them. My students are involved in various CDE’s, and each year is a bit different depending on the makeup of the student population. My favorites are Horse Judging, Job Interview, Parli Pro, and Ag Mechanics. The variety of clas...

     J.R Morrow                              Genesee High School One of the highlights of an Ag Teacher is watching the freshman as they file into your class the first week of school. As I start to work with these “newbie’s” I am doing more than just teaching them.  I am instantly in recruitment mode trying to see what part of FFA would this freshman like and what part of FFA would that freshman like….etc. As these students progress through your program there is no better feeling than seeing a meek freshman turn into a chapter officer by the time they are senior. There are so many facets to FFA and if you try to include all of them at once you will burn out in a hurry. Picking one or two a year to incorporate or to concentrate on has really helped me stay focused.  I have found that making good community contacts early in my career really helped me succeed and keep my ...