The Milwaukee Vincent High School agricultural education program is an example of FFA and agriculture thriving in the most urban area of Wisconsin.
Tyler Foote is one of six agricultural education instructors at Milwaukee Vincent. He grew up in a rural area and had a different agricultural education experience, but he is drawn to teaching in Milwaukee.
We're working with a variety of students and community members who normally would never be exposed to agricultural education," Foote said. "I fell in love with what we are trying to accomplish in the city of Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Vincent offers six different agricultural education pathways for students: agribusiness and entrepreneurship, animal science, culinary arts, food science, environmental science, and horticulture science. All freshmen take a six-week introduction to each of the pathways before deciding which pathway to pursue in their sophomore year.
This exposure is new to Foote's students. "When we ask the question 'where do you get your milk from?' A lot of students say grocery store. They don't realize that a farmer or a dairy cow has to produce that for us," Foote said. Now, thanks to the agricultural education courses that are offered, students are expanding their horizons and knowledge of agriculture.
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Categories: Wisconsin, Education