North Carolina Agricultural Education received a grant from the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to administer a 2-year leadership development program for 16 agriculture teachers with five to 15 years of experience. Eight teachers will be selected from our four western regions (West, Northwest, Southwest and West Central), and eight teachers will be selected from our four eastern regions (East Central, South Central, Northeast, and Southeast).

This Agricultural Education Cohort Program is designed to empower its participants to grow professionally and personally. A draft schedule with in-person and online components is available for review. The specific program objectives and outcomes are listed below.

Program Objectives

• Self-discovery of personal and professional strengths.
• Develop leadership skills of participants.
• Connect with state and industry leaders in agriculture to broaden their understanding of agriculture in North Carolina.

Program Outcomes

• Grow the leadership capacity of the participants.
• Increase retention of the participants as agricultural education teachers.

To apply, program participants will complete an application that outlines their accomplishments and areas for growth as an agriculture teacher. The application also requires a signed letter of support from the applicant’s principal to be submitted via email to jbbledso@ncsu.edu. The Agricultural Education 2023 Cohort Application is now available. Both the application and the principal’s letter of support must be received by Monday, Aug. 28, 2023 at 5 p.m.

If you have any questions, please contact me or Sherilee Deal (sdeal2@ncsu.edu).  We look forward to providing this intentional professional development opportunity!