A Week in Anaheim, CA: Yes Please!

This past week, #psuaged20 has had the amazing opportunity to attend the NAAE Conference. The National Association for Agricultural Educators, or NAAE Conference is put in conjunction with the ACTE Vision Conference. Having the opportunity to not only interact with agricultural teachers, but career and technical education teachers from all over was such an amazing experience!

Before attending the conference, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect.

I knew two things:

1) I would spend a week with the best cohort #psuaged20

2) We were going to DISNEYLAND!!!!!

I had heard from past cohorts that it was a super fun event with the rest of your cohort team, but that was pretty much all I had to go off of. After landing in Los Angeles, we made a trip to Buena Park High School, a local agricultural education program. This was the kick-off event for the FAST, Future Agri Science Teacher program. I loved learning about the different opportunities available to the students.

Throughout the rest of the week, we attended a variety of professional development events and workshops. With a combination of professional development, networking with industry professionals, and delicious food, this week was one to remember.

If anyone reading this knows me, you know I love to talk to people. Through this experience, I connected with tons of teachers across the United States. When speaking to these individuals, we found we were more similar than different! Whether they were from California, Iowa, or Georgia, we all are working to one goal: to give the best opportunities for growth to our students as possible.

I want to thank all of Penn State and NAAE for the opportunity to attend such an amazing conference. I am very thankful for all of the different connections made at the NAAE Conference.