AgEd Task Force almost $180k in pledges, donations for 3-year trial program

The agriculture education task force is almost halfway to their goal of $300,000 to support a three-year trial period for a program at Mt. Pleasant Community High School. With almost $178,000 in pledges and donations, the teaching position will be posted on Teach Iowa.

The other half of the funds will cover the cost of the curriculum and other materials for the program. Mt. Pleasant can launch a Future Farmers of America chapter once six students have enrolled in the agriculture education program.

'Posting gives us the opportunity to start the process with those candidates,” superintendent John Henriksen said during a school board meeting on Monday, Dec. 10. 'It doesn't mean the board has given the approval to hire. Posting the vacancy means we can start to attract candidates, get their resumes and credentials.”

Last week, several students from the high school and Principal Todd Liechty visited Iowa State University's agriculture education program to scope out candidates. High school students were also able to learn more about agriculture education after high school.

Liechty said that there are some decisions the district needs to make in how they want to proceed with the high school's agriculture education program such as focusing on farming or other agriculture careers.

'We need to decide which way we want to build it from the ground up,” Liechty said, adding that the Iowa State University students were asking great questions, which made him think they know what they're doing.