Agriculture education courses have been approved by the state Board of Education for a number of elementary schools in Georgia, including one each in Banks and Pickens counties.
The new standards are a direct result of Senate Bill 330, legislation passed in 2018 which provides for a pilot program to develop and implement agricultural education in elementary schools. The courses will be offered in 20 elementary schools across the state that were selected for the pilot program last fall.
Banks County Elementary School and Hill City Elementary in Pickens County are the only northeast Georgia schools on the list.
“I’m thrilled about this work and the opportunity to add agricultural education at the elementary level,” state School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “At the upper levels, our kids have a chance to learn the business and practice of agriculture, but now we can begin to build that understanding for our younger students in an age-appropriate way.”
State Sen. John Wilkinson, a former FFA program manager and agricultural education teacher and current chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Consumer Affairs committee, sponsored the legislation.
“Food doesn’t come from the grocery store,” Sen. Wilkinson said. “Four or five generations removed from the farm makes it hard for students to understand where their food really comes from. This new program will help kids understand the powerful impact of agriculture on the prosperity of our state.”
Georgia Rep. Terry England, a member of the House Education and Agriculture and Consumer Affairs committees as well as Appropriations chairman, added: “I feel it’s important that kids understand where food, shelter, and fiber come from. This is a step in the right direction.”
Click here to view the list of all the schools chosen for the pilot program.
