Williams, S.K., Extension Educator, University of Idaho Extension
Baker, S.D., Extension Educator, University of Idaho
Cheyney, C., Extension Educator, University of Idaho
Hoffman, K.J., Extension Educator, University of Idaho

ABSTRACT

While Lemhi, Custer, and Butte Counties are classified as rural areas, there are still more people living in county towns versus local farms and ranches.  These towns contain the majority of the counties’ populations.  Many of these residents have moved from larger urban areas and have a limited understanding of agriculture and the intimate details of food production.  In response to a request from the Lemhi County Extension Advisory Committee, the Extension Educator provided a week of agricultural educational programming targeted towards the youth and adult citizens of Lemhi County to educate them about agriculture during National Agriculture Week in March.  Beginning in 2009, Educators from three counties worked along with local public and private schools to implement agricultural educational programs in classrooms.  Radio programming, store window displays, newspaper articles, educational contests, and informational restaurant table displays showcasing agriculture were utilized to inform adults.  A free drive-thru breakfast was hosted in each county showcasing agricultural products and providing educational information.   In 2011, over 1,400 youth learned more about agriculture; 3,000 people listened to agriculture trivia on the radio, and 800 people attended the drive-thru breakfast. 

Introduction

Lemhi, Custer, and Butte Counties, are all considered rural with populations of 7,908, 4,240, and 2,764 respectively. Because of the population base, U.S. Census Bureau Standards classify these counties as rural.  Rural does not always equate to a strong agricultural employment base in today’s society, as many farms and ranches have been sold for development or other purposes.  In fact, agriculture is not a   large employer in these counties. The major employers include government, professional and technical services, accommodation and food services, and retail trade. Although many people live in rural communities, they are not directly tied to and have limited exposure to agriculture.

National Ag Day is a national level campaign that has been designated to celebrate the abundance provided by agriculture.  Too few of people fully understand that agriculture provides almost everything that we eat, use and wear on a daily basis.  By celebrating agriculture during National Ag Week, awareness of agriculture in increased.

 

The National Ag Day program believes every American should:

• Understand how food, fiber, and renewable resource products are produced
• Value the essential role of agriculture in maintaining a strong economy
• Appreciate the role agriculture plays in providing safe, abundant, and affordable products
• Acknowledge and consider career opportunities in agriculture, food, fiber, and renewable resource industries

 

In response to a request from the Lemhi County Extension Advisory Committee, in 2009 Shannon Williams, Lemhi County Extension Educator designed the framework for a local, multi-faceted educational program and celebration for National Agriculture Week.  The program was designed to teach the public where and how their food and fiber was produced. Williams enlisted the participation of adjacent Butte and Custer counties to adapt the structure for individualized programs in those counties.  The goal set forth by the committee was for citizens to make the connection between hamburgers and the cattle they see on the range and pastureland.

Program

The Ag Week committees in each county adopted the following objectives:

1. To present an agricultural educational program in every school in the three counties for grades 1^stthru 8^thgrade so youth become aware of where their food comes from
2. To present agriculture programs that support what is being taught in the classroom and that teachers can refer back too.
3. To distribute educational information to the general public and to showcase agricultural products by providing a free breakfast.
4.  To build partnerships with agriculture related organizations and agencies in each county for the purpose of developing a sustainable program.

 

Program details varied between the counties as each worked to achieve the program goal and objectives with available resources. The committees worked to develop strong educational programs by grade level that could provide additional agricultural awareness as children progressed through school.   Table 1 outlines the school programming efforts by grade.

 

Table 1:  School programs offered in each county
	Butte Activities	Custer Activities	Lemhi Activities
Pre-school to Kindergarten		Cow puppets to demonstrate where food comes from, including milk and cheese	Ag Coloring pages of farm animals and the products produced from them.
1stgrade	Pizza from Field to Table  consist of picture posters of the various “growing” stages of pizza dough and toppings (including tomato sauce, pepperoni, and cheese), and how each was grown or created start to finish. At each station the youth had to read through the poster and then collect a sticker that directed them to the next creation station in line, ending with them getting the sticker topping that looked familiar to them.	Farm Charm where youth make a necklace using components of a farm to learn the importance of agriculture	Poultry education to demonstrate where eggs come from
2ndgrade		Food pyramid activity and to make ice cream in a bag to teach youth about dairy industry & products	Soil cups to  teach components of soil (subsoil, organic layer, top soil, etc) with edible materials
3rdgrade		Ice cream in a bag  to teach youth the farm origins of milk and importance of dairy products	Soil cups to  teach components of soil (subsoil, organic layer, top soil, etc) with edible materials
4thgrade		Thank you cards to local ranchers and farmers which helps youth connect their food to the people who produce it.	Class field trip in a horse drawn wagon with speakers and stops where youth learned about  work horses, forestry, ag products used in medical field, and where corndogs come from
5thgrade		Bread in a bag to teach about history of wheat, nutritional importance, economic benefits of Idaho’s wheat industry.	Agriculture in a Snickers Bar where youth dissect a candy bar to learn about the agricultural products in a candy bar Agriculture Web:  youth “become” the various facets of agriculture (range, beef, chef, grain, etc.) and are linked by intertwining threads
6thgrade		Beef cattle production where youth learn about products produced including by-products	Science Days – youth visit stations about beef, soil, forages, vegetables, irrigations, goats
7thgrade		Speaker & assembly where invited guest speak about their current job in agriculture.  They share the many opportunities that exist in the agriculture filed including business, marketing, science, and technology.	Science Days – youth visit stations about swine, sheep by-products, range, aquaculture, honey, noxious weeds
8thgrade			Taco’s in a bag:  using taco ingredients to discuss nutrition and the various agriculture products
High School	Agricultural Quiz Bowl (classes compete against each other for Pizza party)		Assembly by FFA Chapter

 

 

Lemhi and Custer Counties capitalized on sharing their one local radio station.  The radio station and Extension Educators teamed up to present agricultural-based trivia and educational sound bytes on the radio during Ag Week.  When people answered the radio trivia correctly, they were entered in a drawing for a basket of agricultural products.  Other educational efforts included table tents in local restaurants, window painting contests for local high school classes, store window displays of century ranches, and newspaper articles.

 

A free drive-thru breakfast was offered by each county in their respective communities to showcase agricultural products.  Participants drive thru three stations where they received breakfast, a free gift, and agricultural information.  An Idaho Beef Council grant supports this effort each year by funding beef sausage breakfast burritos.  The United Dairyman of Idaho sponsored milk and string cheese for the breakfast while other associations furnished apples.  Free gifts included insulated lunch bags, reusable grocery sacks, and license plate frames that had agricultural messages printed on them.   Participants have also received education brochures about beef, alfalfa, potatoes, ag in the classroom, grain, wheat, dry peas and lentils.  They have also received recipes using beef, potatoes, dry beans and lentils.   In 2009 there were 500 breakfast served and the program has grown to, 800 in 2011.

 

Partnerships are vital to sustaining Ag Week programming.  Each Extension office worked to build sustaining partnerships and have partnered with Idaho Beef Council, United Dairymen of Idaho, and local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Natural Resource Conservation Districts and the Idaho Farm Bureau.  Additional local partners in Lemhi County include Lemhi County Cattle and Horse Growers Association; Lemhi County Cattlewomen;  Lemhi County Dairy Producers;  The Kitchen;  Idaho Department of Fish and Game;  students from the University of Idaho and Montana State University; Upper Salmon Basin Watershed; and Salmon FFA.  Custer County’s additional partners included Tri-County Cattlemen’s Association; Challis Community Farmer’s Market; Tri-County Supply; Custer County Weed Department; Challis Chamber of Commerce; Custer Economic Development Association; and Challis FFA. 

 

Conclusion

Ag Week has been successful in regard to the overall goal and four objectives established at the beginning of the project.

1. Objective:  To present an agricultural educational program in every school in the three counties for grades 1^stthru 8^thgrade so youth become aware of where their food comes from.

Results:  Programs were offered in 16 of the 19 schools in the 3 counties.  In 2011, over 1,400 youth were reached including the three of the high schools, exceeding the objective.

1. Objective:  To present agriculture programs that support what is being taught in the classroom and that teachers can refer back too.

Results:  A recent survey of teachers indicated that the topics covered tie in with what is taught in the classroom (100%) and 70% of them refer back to information covered during ag week later in the year.

1. Objective:    To distribute educational information to the general public and to showcase agricultural products by providing a free breakfast.

Results: In 2009, 500 breakfasts of beef sausage breakfast burritos, string cheese, milk and apples were served.  In 2011, there were 800 breakfasts served.  People received recipes featuring beef, potatoes, dry beans and lentils.  They received educational materials about alfalfa, potatoes, beef, ag in the classroom, and agriculture bumper stickers.

1. Objective:    To build partnerships with agriculture related organizations and agencies in each county for the purpose of developing a sustainable program.

Results:   The Soil and Water Conservation Districts and Farm Bureaus in each county have staff and budget lines dedicated to assisting in the Ag Week celebration.  The local cattlemen and cattlewomen associations now have volunteer positions dedicated to assisting with ag week activities.  Programming is very sustainable with 25 various organizations and agencies as partners and 65 different volunteers involved.

 

 

Teaching youth about agriculture and helping people make the connection from cattle they see on range and pastureland to the hamburger on their plate has never been more important. Celebrating agriculture through educational programming in schools and free breakfast showcasing agricultural products to communities have forged the road to developing and maintaining partnerships that have committed to a life-long program of community-base agricultural education.  Citizens must gain an understanding and connection with their food and fiber to support a strong, viable agricultural industry for the United States. 

References

Blackburn, D.A. (1999). Ag science fairs:  The next wave in agriculture literacy. Journal of Extension [On-line], 37(4). Available at http://www.joe.org/joe/1999august/ff1.html

Boleman, C.T., Burrell, F. Jr. Agriculture science fairs:  Are students truly learning from this activity. Journal of Extension {On-line}, 41(3). Available at http://www.joe.org/joe/2003june/rb4.php

National Ag Day website:  http://www.agday.org/index.php

  

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