April 2022

In this issue:

NACTA 2022 Judging Contest Recap
NACTA Featured Member - Shannon Arnold
Early Bird Registration Ends April 15!
Upcoming Events & Deadlines
Welcome New NACTA Members!
Renew or Become a New NACTA Member

NACTA 2022 Judging Contest Recap

From a press release written by NCTA Dean, Dr. Larry Gossen.

Nebraskans introduced college students from around the United States to their unique agriculture and natural resources during the 2022 NACTA Judging Contest in North Platte.

In three days, more than 500 students plus coaches and guests represented 42 colleges in contests of ag business, mechanics, crops, livestock, dairy, knowledge bowl, precision ag, horticulture, soils, and equine management. The Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture is a longtime member of the North American Colleges and Teachers in Agriculture (NACTA). This organization is comprised of 2-year and 4-year colleges. Susie Whittington, professor at The Ohio State University’s Agriculture Technical Institute (ATI) at Wooster, is the current NACTA president. She attended Saturday’s events and assisted NCTA Professor Mary Rittenhouse by serving on a panel judging Agricultural Sales and Communications presentations.

A hearty congratulations to Dr. Brad Ramsdale, our NCTA agronomy professor and crops judging coach, for coordinating this massive event. The NACTA conference, represented by Mike Roeber, livestock judging coach and faculty member of Northeast Nebraska Community College in Norfolk, read a resolution to nearly 600 banquet guests.

“Be it resolved that the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture administration, faculty, staff and students, the contest officiants who gave their time, talents, and resources to make these contests possible, we thank and commend them for hosting this NACTA Judging Contest in an exemplary manner. The hospitality extended and enthusiasm displayed are greatly appreciated. The NACTA conference coaches also wish to express their appreciation to the City of North Platte, and the sponsors for their financial and in-kind support of the 2022 NACTA Judging Contest. From all the participants, the coaches, and members, we thank you.”

To view the full list of winners from the 2022 Judging Contest please click here.
Photos from the Awards Banquet can be found here. Additional photos from the contests can be found here.

NACTA Featured Member - Shannon Arnold
Each month we sit down with a member to highlight their academic and professional career, and to see how they are making the best of their membership in NACTA. This month’s Featured Member is NACTA Western Regional Director Shannon Arnold. 

Dr. Shannon Arnold is a Professor in Agricultural Education at Montana State University where she holds a 75% teaching appointment. Her teaching focuses on extension and non-formal education for youth and adults, outreach education for agricultural professionals, program development and evaluation, and equine-guided education. She currently serves as the NACTA Western Region Director.

How long have you been a member of NACTA?
I’ve been a NACTA member for about 15 years. I joined while I was a graduate student at the University of Florida. They emphasized NACTA quite a bit and it was very influential for me.

I try to stay in contact with our Associate Dean about promoting NACTA to all new hires in our department. Whenever we get a new hire, I try to send them an email about the association and notate the opportunity for engagement and awards. For those who have never been to a meeting or want to present, I also share about the annual travel awards and other various perks of being a NACTA member.

Looking at your time with the Association, what have you most enjoyed doing?
By far it has been the chance to meet people that I wouldn’t normally interact with because they are outside my discipline. The ability to network with and collaborate with other educators who represent different approaches to teaching and learning has been truly unique.
I have also presented several times at NACTA meetings. My institution also hosted the 2014 conference and it was my pleasure to serve on that planning committee. That was a learning experience that I really enjoyed. I’ve also served as a reviewer for the NACTA Journal.

What are you looking forward to?
Getting to see people in person again. As much as we all love online, it’s not the same. We can’t connect in the same way as we can face to face. I’m also looking forward to meeting the new members and hearing what people have been doing since we last met: that’s exciting. Hearing about those new teaching and learning practices that I can take home and put into practice is the best for me.

Anything else that you would like to add?
If you are in the Western Region, please feel free to reach out to me! Let’s connect!
The list of each NACTA region can be found here. https://nactateachers.org/index.php/nacta-regions
Reach out to Shannon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Early Bird Registration Ends April 15!
Early bird registration for the 2022 NACTA Conference, to be held June 20-24, 2022 ends April 15! At this annual meeting of the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) you will be able to connect with and learn from others who share the same passion for the improvement of teaching and learning in agriculture, food and natural resources. The annual NACTA conference will provide you with new teaching techniques, ideas and resources. It is also one of the best professional development activities for networking with other teaching professionals where the common discipline is “teaching.”

Register by April 15 to save $75!
Registration for the in-person conference includes your choice of workshops, live poster and oral presentations, networking sessions, tours, annual award presentations and the annual business meeting. Some events, like the poster and oral presentations, will be presented on demand and available for 60 days after the meeting. Please note that you will need to register and be signed in to view any conference events or presentations.

Additional meeting details and registration can be found at www.nactaconference.org.

Upcoming Events & Deadlines
TBLC Virtual Annual Conference
April 12-13, 19-20, 2022
Virtual

2022 AAAE National Conference 
May 16-19, 2022
Oklahoma City, OK

New NACTA Members

NACTA had 22 new members in the last month. We hope you will join us in welcoming them!

Renew or Become a New NACTA Member

NACTA is the largest professional development organization that focuses specifically on the scholarship of teaching and learning in agriculture, food and natural resources.

Need to renew your membership? Want to invite a colleague to join? Want to change your membership status? Visit the membership page here.

We appreciate your NACTA membership!