Summer doesn't slow down for agriculture educators

When the school year ends at Southeastern High School, students in agricultural education don’t stop learning or slow down — and neither does their teacher.

For FFA Advisor and Agriculture Educator Ellyse Simpson, summer is a season of student engagement in the field, beyond the tall ceilings of the department’s shop. While formal classes pause, the workload shifts to a new rhythm: organizing a trip to FFA Camp, attending professional development trainings, paperwork, supervising student projects, and helping manage the Clark County Fair. It’s all part of a week’s work for agriculture educators across Ohio.

At Southeastern, a small rural school in South Charleston, Ohio, FFA members in grades seven through 12 participate in classroom instruction and leadership activities year-round, preparing them for real-world agricultural experiences that enhance the farm life they grew up with.

The 66 students enrolled in elective courses such as livestock management, mechanical principles, and animal anatomy and physiology are automatically members of the National FFA Organization, formerly known as the Future Farmers of America.

Clark County boasts 7 FFA chapters and over 14 agricultural educators. Southeastern itself sits on the edge of the county, alongside schools like Tecumseh, while programs like Global Impact STEM Academy and Clark CTC sit inside the city.

Jake ZajkowskiThe chapter’s FFA banner hangs in the classroom at Southeastern High SchoolOne of Simpson’s busiest weeks of the summer includes visiting more than 30 students engaged in supervised agricultural experiences, or hands-on work experiences that provide career skills through entrepreneurship, job placement, or research. These work experiences range from working at a pig breeding operation and companies like STgenetics to managing a worm-bait business or helping at a family-owned tree company.

“As an ag teacher, you can’t really supervise a project you’ve never seen in real life,” Simpson explains. During site visits, she and Co-Teacher Darrick Riggs ensure students are meeting their goals, building strong relationships with employers and developing confidence in their future careers.

Agriculture educators are often the spark that encourages students to explore unique job opportunities.

Their work continues year-round, supported in part by Ohio’s Fifth Quarter Grant, a program from the Department of Education and Workforce that funds extended contracts for teachers in agriculture and natural resources. The agency calls it a “supplemental resource to ensure delivery of summer instruction and to develop student entrepreneurial activity.” 

Jake Zajkowski A physical model of the 3-circle curriculum concept is displayed in the classroom.These additional extended paid days, up to $2,500 per educator, help educators prepare classrooms, maintain student records, and most critically, mentor students working in jobs and farm projects that don’t follow a school calendar.

“A quality agriculture program will have SAE (supervised agricultural experience) visits,” Simpson says. They are one of the three core components in the three-circle model they follow, along with FFA activities and classroom instruction, she explains. “Year-round engagement is essential.”

It’s a smart investment by the state, too. According to AET, the national record-keeping platform for agricultural students, the average high school agriculture department reports more than $114,000 in student income annually through SAEs. Nationwide, more than one million students in agricultural education programs collectively earn over $1 billion, with $733 million in SAE-related spending reinvested into local economies. 

One of Simpson’s students, Mary Ellen Moore, works full-time in the summer at Fat Hen Farmhouse. A chapter secretary in the Southeastern FFA chapter, Moore balances school-year work with summer days packed with chores and responsibilities.

Jake ZajkowskiMary Ellen Moore, works full-time in the summer at Fat Hen Farmhouse
“On a normal day, I go down to the barn, take care of my chickens, collect eggs, take people to the field, move equipment, help with cattle, check pastures — everything that needs to get done,” Moore says. She’s also raising turkeys to show at the Clark County Fair, where she has been weighing the birds weekly to select the most competitive one.

During an SAE visit, Moore guided Simpson through the farm store’s meat shelves, the poultry barn, and her turkey pen, all signs of a summer spent building skills that go far beyond the classroom. Students who complete SAE requirements also earn an additional quarter credit each year toward graduation at Southeastern.

Jake ZajkowskiMoore shows Simpson frozen, packaged meat produced and sold on the farm.This year’s Clark County Fair, held July 18-25, is another major milestone for the Southeastern FFA chapter. Both Simpson and Moore will be there all week — Moore as an exhibitor, and Simpson as an advisor and committee member of the horse department.

“At the fair, you can find ag teachers everywhere,” Simpson says. “We’re supporting members during weigh-ins, helping with any animal issues or illnesses, and acting as a liaison between FFA programs and fair organizers. We keep everyone in the loop on rule changes and help make things run smoothly.”

Simpson credits the Fifth Quarter Grant with making that support possible and her district for valuing the range of opportunities offered to students.

Jake ZajkowskiEllyse Simpson sits in her classroom, wearing her Ohio Association of Agriculture Educators polo.Before the fair-school funding model, public schools lost a lot of career tech funding when students went to regional career centers or outside their public school district. “The Fifth Quarter Grant has helped offset those costs and allowed me to keep doing meaningful work in the summer,” — work that otherwise would have to be done outside contracted hours.

Simpson and the Ohio Association of Agriculture Educators have been working to increase access to these funds that benefit Ohio’s agricultural youth. This past spring, they submitted testimony advocating for the increase of the Fifth Quarter Grant allocation in House Bill 96, which would eventually become the state budget signed on July 1, 2025. They pointed to student achievement and career readiness, workforce development in agriculture, and educator retention as reasons for the investment. This budget cycle, a recurring amount of $600,000 per fiscal year, or $1.2 million in the biennium, was granted. Although the increased budget allocation was not heard by legislators, they remain hopeful for future consideration.

Watching her students grow, personally and professionally, is what is most important to Simpson and keeps her motivated.

“Sometimes it’s not just about their leadership development. It’s about how they grow as people — developing their network, their confidence, their friendships. FFA made the world feel small to me. That’s why I found myself in this role,” she reflects.