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CTE Month 2015: This feature is the second of four stories to be released by SWAG�ϼ� in February in celebration of Career Technical Education (CTE) Month.

CTE Month® is an annual celebration held in February of CTE community members’ achievements and accomplishments nationwide. CTE Month 2015 gives the CTE community a chance to tell the stories of leadership and excellence from classrooms across the country, and raise awareness of the crucial role that CTE has in readying our nation for economic success and workforce competitiveness.

February 11, 2015
Story and photo by Brandon Steinert

Agriculture has been a boon for innovation throughout history and in modern times. Inspiration for inventions and technological advancements frequently find their roots in agricultural industries. Of course, agriculture itself is an innovation that changed human history and has led to the quality of life we now enjoy.

In such a fast-paced technology-driven environment, SWAG�ϼ� realizes the importance of employing professionals capable of staying on the cutting edge. Dr. Vic Martin, Instructor-Coordinator for the college’s Agriculture Program, has shown his commitment to delivering a state-of-the-art hands-on experience for his students.

The proof of his success is in the proverbial pudding. SWAG�ϼ�’s agriculture programs have seen a 50-percent increase since Martin joined the faculty in January of 2010.

Technological Advancements

��“Farmers knew about GPS and satellites way before most of the public knew it existed,” Martin said. “Farming is now really high-tech, and it’s going to keep getting more high-tech all the time.”

He has a couple of teaching methods to keep his students up to date. He lets them work with the equipment and tinker with things like GPS, auto-steer and yield monitors. He also regularly brings in experts to speak to students about recent developments.

SWAG�ϼ� has the unique advantage of housing a program to train CASE International’s technicians, which allows the college access to brand new tractors and other equipment. Martin frequently teams up with the CASE instructor to add value to the SWAG�ϼ� Agriculture experience.

While many aspects of agriculture are constantly in flux, it always comes back to the raw materials nature provides. Part of the curriculum is time spent in a soil pit, which is essentially a rectangular hole in the ground used to show students various types and characteristics of soil. SWAG�ϼ� agriculture students truly receive a wide spectrum of experiences under Martin’s guidance.

Industry Responsiveness

As the industry continues to require more highly skilled workers to keep pace with the changing landscape, Martin has spearheaded the effort to develop a new relevant certificate program to meet the demand: Beef Cattle Production.

This 23 or 37 credit-hour certificate prepares students for a career in livestock production.

“We asked the people running the area feedyards, ‘What do you need from an employee?’” he said. “This program helps people be more proficient more quickly, which reduces turnover and helps the graduates advance their careers.”

The beef cattle production workforce was previously oriented around low-wage, low-skilled jobs. Having educated, effective employees reduces overhead.

“The goal is to keep cattle healthy. This certificate teaches students how to work around a horse, how to manage a sick cow. They learn animal nutrition; They need to know this stuff,” he said. “Effective workers can help take care of cattle from conception to consumption.”

The program has been a success, and is picking up speed as the value of beef increases.

Holistic Curriculum

It can be tempting to view agriculture as a very technical industry, requiring a technical curriculum. However, Martin has taken a more adaptive approach to designing his coursework.

From understanding the politics and legal issues involved with agriculture, to understanding the science behind how a plant uses nutrients to flourish, Martin has taken an approach to teaching that includes the entire lifestyle of farming.

“I’m approaching it almost like a liberal arts education. In the old days, you just had to memorize everything,” he said. “Now it’s more important to learn where to find information because there is too much to memorize. We are teaching them to think and not just gain facts.”

“My coursework is global and integrated,” he said. “They might not enjoy some of the science stuff, but I make sure they have the background so they understand why what happens, happens. I also harp on observation. They should be able to simply look at something and be able to think critically and make decisions about what they need to do, all based on observation. It should be second nature.”