FFA, School-Based Agricultural Education's student leadership organization, has experienced significant membership growth in recent years. From 1990-2010, FFA membership increased 31%, yet has experienced a similar increase (28%) in just the last eight years, the same time affiliation became a membership option. The purpose of this study was to…

Professional scientific societies, such as the American Association for Agricultural Education (AAAE), have not been immune to struggles with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), even as it has come to the forefront of national conversation. In response to the 2017-2020 AAAE Strategic Plan, specifically goal one to build a more inclusive…

High school graduates must be College and Career Ready to be successful in their future academic and employment pursuits. Employability skills such as communication, leadership, and critical thinking are in high demand from colleges and employers. High school academic success is an indicator the person has the skills and background necessary for…

Sustaining human capital in the agricultural industry is critical to the United States' ability to maintain preeminence in the global economy. This goal has become a greater challenge due to declining participation in agricultural academic programs, particularly at 1890 institutions. Although the anticipated outcome of the 1965 "merger"…

School-based agricultural education (SBAE) programs have become more diverse with the ever changing and growing agriculture industry. Agricultural education teachers are challenged with expanding their knowledge and competencies to effectively teach and design successful SBAE programs. Needs assessments aid in providing guidance for professional…

Urban youth engaged in after-school organizations have more positive attributes compared to their unengaged contemporaries. The FFA is one particular intra-curricular organization with after-school components; yet, urban students do not participate in FFA at the same levels as rural students. The purpose of this descriptive study was to explore…

Corn clubs played an important role in improving agriculture at the turn of the 20th century. Corn clubs were local organizations consisting of boys who cultivated corn on one acre of land under the supervision of a local club leader. The purpose of this historical research study was to document the organization, operation, and outcomes of corn…

Many state FFA associations conduct summer camps focusing on leadership and personal development for FFA members. Interestingly, little research has been conducted on the impact or outcomes of these common activities. The purpose of this split-plot factorial repeated-measures experiment was to assess the level of campers' learning of the…

The traditions of the National FFA Organization (FFA) are grounded in agrarianism. This ideology focuses on the ability of farming and nature to develop citizens and integrity within people. Agrarianism has been an important thread of American rhetoric since the founding of country. The ideology has morphed over the last two centuries as the…

This descriptive study was a special project for the National FFA [Future Farmers of America] Organization to determine the demographic makeup of rural, suburban, urban, and randomly selected at-large FFA chapters from the four national FFA regions. Summary data for this study revealed that gender in selected FFA chapters was 55% male and 45%…

This research project sought to determine the origin of the three-component model of agricultural education in the United States and provided a contextual base for future research into the three-component model for agricultural education. The study concluded that each of the three components of the agricultural education model originated at…

Teachers distribute their time in many ways. The study sought to determine how agriculture teachers distribute their time among 11 selected teacher activities (i.e., preparation for instruction; classroom/laboratory teaching; laboratory preparation and/or maintenance; grading/scoring students' work; administrative duties-program management;…