Cooperating Center: What do I want?

When asked what I am looking for in a cooperating center, I have to sit back and think for a few minutes. Does location play a part (hopefully not)? Are there any classes I really want to teach? Should I try to find a school with a large or small FFA? As someone without any experience in FFA, finding the right cooperating center is key.

Let's go through a list of four things I am looking for in a cooperating center:

1. Strong FFA

As I am learning more and more about the three circle model of agricultural education, I learn how pivotal a role FFA plays in preparing students for success. I hope to find a cooperating center that values FFA and utilizes the many opportunities for students. I would like to learn more about CDE's and LDE's, so a school that participates in these events can help me see them first-hand.

2. A Wide Variety of Class Offerings

Agricultural Education serves as a great platform for students to learn about technical skills and information they can use in real life. With classes ranging from animal science to agricultural mechanics, students can be prepared for success. I hope to find a cooperating center that offers a variety of classes. Some classes that I think are important and very crucial to the future of student's success can be biotechnology classes and food science. Agriculture is an ever-changing field, so classes like food science and biotechnology can help students adapt to changes in the future. Plus, who doesn't love food?!

3. Technology and Innovation

Like I mentioned before, agriculture is a constantly changing, evolving industry. Giving students access to a variety of technology and innovative products can help students prepare for careers after high school. I worked at a hydroponic greenhouse for two years, so a school with a hydroponic or aquaponics system would be awesome! Many people think hydroponics will have a large impact on the future of food, so introducing students in high school can make a large impact. With other upcoming technology and lab equipment, I would love to learn how to operate the machinery so I could potentially use them in my future classroom. Allowing to see how a teacher can use them first-hand can really help me decide how I would use them in a future classroom.

4. Strong SAE (Supervised Agricultural Experience)

Motivating students to complete an SAE project is an awesome opportunity that I would love to learn more about. The AET, or Agricultural Experience Tracker, is a great tool used to track student's progress on their SAE. After learning about what an SAE is and how it can be incorporated into schools was very interesting. I think it is important to allow students pick a topic they are interested in to encourage autonomy in the classroom. I am excited to see different projects students will be working on at my cooperating center!

A strong FFA, a variety of classes, technology, and a strong SAE are hopefully four components that can help me find a good cooperating center. Finding a school with all of these in one will be difficult, but I am excited to see where I end up!

For those currently teaching, what was on your list of "wants" for your cooperating center? Do you have any thoughts of items I should add or drop from my list?