Country school board actions

The little rural town of Morrison Illinois had a power shift with the school board. The election resulted in a higher number of rural representatives than those from town. The fear was the high school curriculum would be swung into the farmer side. The elected farmers took a look at the money allocation and came to a conclusion. They discovered the vocational agriculture teacher was not fully active. They fired the full time agriculture teacher and hired him as part time. It seems the pragmatic farmers were concerned about the bottom line and how to control it. This is the primary difference between the farmers and the city folk.
Have you ever heard of a similar action carried out by any elected officials?

a reply to: datasdream

I find it difficult to know what is more surprising.

The idea that one can be taught agriculture in a class room, as opposed to on the job, or the fact that a rural majority decided to fire and then part time hire the individual who was supposed to be teaching subjects relating to, and attempting to maintain the rural way of life.

In any case, I have no idea what sort of precedent there is for this sort of decision elsewhere, but I do think that if the department/class that the teacher was running was not effective, that they made a good call in changing the terms of that individuals employment.

a reply to: TrueBrit

You correct that agriculture can't be taught in the classroom. But even worse is the curriculum, if you'd seen it, you'd vomit. They aren't teaching propagation of plants, or soil biology, or livestock management and care. What they are teaching is the economic practices of managing a farm like a corporate buisness. It might as well be economics class. It's heartbreaking to a few of us that we can't show our children the lessons of hard work and caring about ability to be self sufficient.

a reply to: Natas0114

Well, if they have a family farm they should be learning the nuts and bolts at home I should think. What's wrong with teaching them about how to maximize the farm profits? Especially with family farms going away it seems a wise decision to try educating them how to compete.

Let's face it, you can be the best farmer in the world but if you can't run a business all that farming skill is going to get you is a job running a farm for somebody else.

a reply to: Natas0114

See, thats just bloody stupid.

Handling animals from newborn to adulthood, learning how to assess the status of a crop, learning about leaving fields fallow long enough that the soil is not damaged by over burdening the nutrient level in the soil, learning about the seasons and why they are important to agriculture, true outdoorsmanship... that sort of thing should be the only thing an agriculture class ought to teach. Farming is not so special that it needs its own version of economic education to make it function. There are business studies classes which can handle that.

a reply to: TrueBrit

Agreed. The internets ability to give instant info has seriously affected the way people view teaching. Hands on teaching is a must. What good is an agriculture class if your students have to Google directions on how to use a shovel? We already have countless small and large buisness classes available to many for free. The modern mentality that you can be an instant expert from a YouTube video is a little heartbreaking for a guy like myself, who practices old fashioned timber harvesting techniques. I use them because it's better for the environment and my local economy. I'm not over harvesting with a machine that destroys as much as it wastes, just to mass produce for someone else to capitalize. I make my own lumber to build my own homes. It's a dying art, much like farming. If I could only show these kids the satisfaction you get from honest hard work, while not having a negative impact on our planet. Yes it's slow, honestly, I don't give a damn. It's worth it. Growing your own crops whether it's for your own consumption or for your buisness should be the foremost important class in a world where pollution is rampant, and obesity and starvation occurs at the same time. Sorry to digress, but this topic is very emotional for me, as I watch our children lose touch with the planet in favor of plastic self indulgence.....

a reply to: Ksihkehe

If they have a family farm at home- yes I agree they should learn good buisness practices. However, family farms are getting rare. Modern American farmers can't even pick what they want to grow- it's dictated by what futures index calculates a demand for to keep the markets stable. They say what they will be paying for what, with complete knowledge that overburdened soil will produce less in coming seasons. Allow them to once again maximize their profit and minimize the farmers cut, also drives farmers to sell property when they can't make the mortgage which is another win for the paper pushers...

originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: Natas0114

See, thats just bloody stupid.

Handling animals from newborn to adulthood, learning how to assess the status of a crop, learning about leaving fields fallow long enough that the soil is not damaged by over burdening the nutrient level in the soil, learning about the seasons and why they are important to agriculture, true outdoorsmanship... that sort of thing should be the only thing an agriculture class ought to teach. Farming is not so special that it needs its own version of economic education to make it function. There are business studies classes which can handle that.

You don't know what the hell you are talking about.

Ag economics IS vastly different from running a retail business. First, there are ZERO advertizing costs. Second, livestock management succeeds or fails not on your profit per unit, but on "replacement cost." What matters is not that you bought calves at 300 lb and grew them to 870 lb at a dollar a pound, but the replacement cost of buying steers next year. In agribusiness, rising prices this year indicate rising COSTS for next year. The farms that use hedging contracts are the ones that survive sudden price shocks in the cash market. Farmers who just carry the money from one year to the next in a checkbook are the ones who get taken out when ag prices hit all-time highs. It's what happened to family farms in the US in the 1980s. The small family farms that didn't use sophisticated 'marketing' are out of business now.

All of the venders, from tractor sellers to fertilizer and grain merchants, use sophisticated equity instruments. If the Farm manager doesn't understand the principles of ag finances, they last about 3 years in the business.

So, for people going to work in the industry, it is probably the most important "vocational tech" class offered by that school district.

a reply to: redempsh

Sure. And I will bet that it covers all the things that really screw with a farmers life, like vast and sudden changes in law without warning, what to do when the GMO being grown in the next door plot to yours gets cross pollinated with your crop, how to secure a loan to beat big agribusiness in court, and so on.

Pish. Will it teach you how to avoid a crush injury from a runaway tractor? No? Does it matter then? No.

a reply to: TrueBrit

Most ag classes also require you to raise a show animal that fits the local ag situation, usually a pig, sheep, or calf. You get to castrate it, feed it, medicate it, etc. You get classroom credit for it, at the same time you have to go out to the "ag barn" before and after school to tend your animal. You then have to sell it at the local stock show to get you used to a live auction, etc.

Mixing feed rations takes some higher math, and is probably taught in a classroom/online. Does that invalidate it, because it doesn't fit your picture of a farmer, outstanding in his field?

You ever taken a shop or ag class? Been a member of FFA? didn't think so.

a reply to: redempsh

Tending to one show animal is vastly different than 2000 head. Show me honest cost per pound analysis with replacement cost on a working ranch holding 2000 head vs what one spoiled kid with unlimited feeds(start,fattening,finish) who has to show up for 30 minutes twice a day. Considering a show head gets sold at a local 4-H show that is nothing remotely close to reality. You sound like a Monsanto rep. Or is it F.S. grain?