With the global population now over 8 billion people, feeding and fueling the world has never been a bigger challenge. Meeting this challenge requires innovative approaches to agriculture and developing the next generation of scientists and leaders through education.
Ste. Genevieve County R-II is excited to share that Dr. Hannah Fritsche-Donze, an agricultural education instructor at SGHS, has been selected to participate in the Teacher Leader Community, a prestigious leadership program from Nourish the Future designed to address these critical needs.
Nourish the Future is a national STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) initiative connecting students to modern agriculture. Its mission is to help teachers inspire their students to learn science, solve problems, and see the possibilities of careers in agriculture.
Dr. Fritsche-Donze was selected as one of only 32 teachers nationwide to participate in the year-long fellowship supported by partners like the United Soybean Board, the National Corn Growers Association, and Bayer. Industry partners fund the Nourish the Future program to help farmers educate the public on modern farming and the science behind their practices.
Nourish the Future education lead Heather Bryan summed up the importance of connecting the agriculture industry to the classroom, "Effective STEM teaching requires real-world context, which students and teachers find accessible in agriculture."
The year-long fellowship provides Dr. Fritsche-Donze with a comprehensive professional development experience, including a behind-the-scenes tour of the research happening at Bayer Crop Science in St. Louis, and attendance at the nation’s leading agriculture conference: Commodity Classic. Dr. Fritsche-Donze will receive free classroom resources, specialized training in leadership and curriculum development, and access to additional industry experts from companies like Syngenta. As a key component of the program, Dr. Fritsche-Donze will develop and present a professional development session to share the science of agriculture with colleagues in Missouri.
"Learning science through agriculture inspires students to pursue critical scientific careers—many of which are currently unfilled in the agriculture industry," added Bryan.
"Through this program, Dr. Fritsche-Donze is opening up new opportunities for students and her colleagues and enhancing the way we teach science."
For more information, visit nourishthefuture.org.
ABOUT NOURISH THE FUTURE
Nourish the Future is a national education initiative developed by science teachers for science teachers, connecting students to modern agriculture. The mission of Nourish the Future is to help teachers inspire their students– not only to learn science and solve problems– but to see the possibilities of STEM careers in agriculture.
Nourish the Future participants:
receive curriculum and free supplies to implement the lessons
work with a supportive network of leading-edge science teachers
connect with local farmers, food scientists, agronomists, technologists, researchers, and other agriculture experts
Nourish the Future's website provides free, standards-aligned lesson plans and curriculum for classrooms around the country.
Teachers interested in the leadership program can visit the Teacher Leader Community page.
The program is generously sponsored by the United Soybean Board and the National Corn Growers Association, with local support provided by state agriculture and education groups.
For more information, visit nourishthefuture.org.
Contact: connect@nourishthefuture.org