Progress 07/01/08 to 06/30/11
Outputs
The long term goal of our CSREES grant was to implement a veterinary science program for high school students through Eastside Technical Center.That has mushroomed into Locust Trace Agri-Science Farm, an agriculture high school that sits on 82 acres and contains 5 agriculture program areas, 2 of which are centered around veterinary science instruction.We have increased our ag education staff from one teacher to five teachers. Obj 1:We are currently teaching Veterinary Science as a part of our Agriscience curriculum in two courses: Small and Large Animal Science/Veterinary Science and Equine Science/Veterinary Science.This high school serves sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Obj 2:Students are prepared for careers in Animal and Veterinary Science by job shadowing, lab activities through CREES grant supplies, and guest speakers. Our unique high school features a non-profit vet clinic. Clinic staff work in a collaborative effort with our students through shadowing, mentoring,and through an audio-video live feed system that allows students and veterinarians to interact during a routine exam or a surgery. The video feeds back to a class of 30, a number too large to accomodate exam or surgery room viewing. Dialog between students and veterinarians occurs during procedures through this system. Veterinary staff also work with the ag teachers to enhance curriculum and serve as guest speakers. Obj 3:We now have articulation agreements with 5 post-secondary institutions in the state. Some of our students take advantage of on-line college courses offered through Murray State University which further increases the number of college credit hours earned. Obj 4:We have increased collaborative activities with UK and the community, and they maintain a heavy staple in our curriculum through collaborations, guest speakers, field trip sites, etc. Dialog has begun on how UK and Locust Trace students can work together on small scale research projects, either at our school farm or at the university farm. Our ag advisory board meets twice a year. Obj 5:The e-journal is complete and available for high school student publication. This journal can be found at www.uky.edu/Ag/CLD/ials/index.htm Obj 6:Recruiting strategies implemented included collaboration projects with high school teachers, PALS (Farm to Food) program with elementary teachers, brochures in high schools,speaking to audiences of interested students at scheduling time. We additionally publicized our vet science program on the District's Local access cable channel through several live interviews as well as still shot information slides. Obj 7:Instructors have attended animal and veterinary science workshops at State Ag Teachers Conference. We work with UK's College of Ag as they speak to our students and as we use their facilities as field trip sites, curriculum sites, and potential research sites. Obj 8:As of yet, we have not established a certification accepted by KVMA. We hope to continue this dialog, proceeding with our curriculum plans,cooperating with veterinarians to provide our students with the best possible education and resources. PRODUCTS: The development of our Veterinary Science Curriculum is our biggest product right now. Parasite labs, slides of semen, parasites, and bacteria, accupuncture models, skeletons, animal part models, stitching and suturing kits were purchased to use in implementing the curriculum improvements. Additionally, audiovisual materials were purchased so that the students could learn the basic principles of accupuncture and accupressure, artificial insemination, embryo transfer, basic physical examinations, breeding soundness, as well as other animal husbandry and veterinary techniques. We have purchased and are utilizing on a daily baseis the larger items needed to fully implement our veterinary science program. These items include the kennel and cages for housing overnight animals, grooming station, exam tables, etc. Certainly the Locust Trace Agri-Science Farm itself is an end product that this grant shared in developing. And the committment to Veterinary Science study (2 full programs fully emphasizing Vet Science) provides opportunities for our students to become more qualified, competent, and competitive in this field. Brochures, articles, flyers, webpage, Facebook, Twitter, and radio broadcasts are another result of this endeavor. The 99 college credit hours earned by our seniors since this project beagan are also a direct result of this program. OUTCOMES: The number of students directly serviced through this project have increased from 45 to 110. As aspects of the Veterinary Science program are interwoven into other agricultural curriculum through special projects, that number may increase. All students at Locust Trace Agri-Science Farm have opportunity to job shadow at the vet clinic. Through the use of these grant funds as well as collaboration with the in house veterinary clinic, our students have access to the equipment needed to develop appropriate skills for the animal science and veterinary science industry. The Locust Trace Agri-Science Farm Veterinary Science Program serves students from the 5 public high schools in Fayette County as well as interested students from neighboring Woodford County. The majority of our students are from urban areas and have been introduced to the agriculture/veterinary science for the first time. Transition rates from last year's seniors show 73% successful transition, whether that be to employment or some type of post-secondary education program. We did have 99 hours of college credit earned by graduating seniors since this project began. College credit is earned by passing the KOSSA (Kentucky occupational Skills Standards Assessment) test given in the spring. Our outside evaluators tracked student gains with pre and post quizzes of veterinary science. Our ag advisory Board met 12 times during 2008 and 2011 to discuss and plan development of the new agriscience school (including the veterinary science program) and aligning the curriculum with industry standards. Members of the board include: farmers, state ag officials, community members, extension personnel, conservation officials, CEO's, Farm Bureau Board members, university personnel, large and small animal vets, and others. Members of the community deemed as stakeholders ie: ag advisory council members, co-op site supervisors, and job shadowing site supervisors were surveyed by our external evaluator. The results were overwhelmingly positive (100% agree/strongly agree) with stakeholders feeling that the vet science program thus far was benificial, motivated learning, challenged students, dealt with contemporary issues, and enhanced community relations. Our evaluators surveyed the board regarding progress on the program to date. Results of the survey were very favorable. Our students also have the opportunity to conduct scienctific based research here on our school farm and then to publish findings in the E-journal that was created through this grant. Experience with the scientific research process and knowledge of steps needed to become published will better prepare our students for life beyond high school. it also makes them more a more marketable recruit for post-secondary instititions. Our FFA program has expanded as well. This is a direct result of increased interest in the Vet Science program. As a chapter we enjoyed 100% membership for the third year in a row. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: During last school year, we added a second ag teacher to the program. Besides collaborative teaching with regular high school teachers, the primary role of that second ag teacher was to work with counselling staff at our local high schools and recruit students for the following year for all 5 program areas. The creation of a Community Liasion position to interface with the community as well as recruit future students as been a key way to disseminate information about our program as well. The Community Liasion gives daily tours, collaborates with elementary, middle, and high schools, and takes programs presentations to various events in our community. Agriculture students sometimes assist with these. The Community Liasion position also runs the school webpage, facebook account, and twitter account to promote the project. We have utilized several media sources to disseminate information about and advertise for our program. We have several local, regional, and national newspaper spotlights on our program as it brings animal and veterinary science studies to students in and around Fayette County. The newspaper also has been used to explain about our move to the Agriscience school, located on the recently acquired 80 acre tract of land and just what that has meant to our students and the curriculum we offer. We showcase our program and curriculum yearly in the Eastside Technical Center Newsletter that goes to to parents and advisory council members. We will now have our own Locust Trace Newsletter to feature what each program area in agriculture accomplishes. We use email to update our FFA Alumni and ag advisory council. Our district also has a local TV station and web page that we sometimes use to advertise our program and accomplishments. Our Fayette County Farm Bureau as well as our fayette County Conservation District has given us space in their newsletter that circulates to their members. By working at the Bluegrass Fair, students were able to promote our program. Several students have attended local civic and ag related groups on our communities to explain about our program and its achievements. We also created a brochure to pass out or make available where appropriate to advertise the curriculum of the program and opportunities both through the FFA and the agriscience program. FUTURE INITIATIVES: Veterinary science studies have center stage at our new Agriscience school. Through the use of this grant, we have purchased larger equipment, developed the vet science curriculum more fully and increase opportunities for our students. Our students have daily access to animals, large and small, instead of relying on field trips and guest speakers to bring them to us. Through the breeding, feeding, management, and care, they apply basic veterinary science techniques every day. Their exposure to the realities of the industry is inherent. We will continue to utilize our community to the fullest for job shadowing and co-op sites. Through the clinic that is located in our building, we have veterinarians perform basic exams and surgical procedures at our school. This again increases student exposure to skills, knowledge, appropriate procedures, resources, equipment, management, etc. Besides enough room for large animal production and handling, we also have plenty of room for small animal production and handling. We strive to increase the opportunities and skill level of our students. We will continue working closely with veterinarians in our state to establish the veterinary science certification and to provide a rigorous curriculum.
Impacts
We are equipping the students in Fayette County with the job skills necessary for careers in the animal industry, large or small. We are also providing them with valued contacts into the industry. Previously, no veterinary science education courses were being offered in our county. Now, students have access to curriculum to gain valued skills, whether they make animal care their career or their lifelong hobby. By collaborating with our in-house veterinarian through observation, classroom instruction, and job shadowing, our students are also gaining the competitive edge needed for careers in the veterinary science industry.
Publications
- http://www.kentucky.com/2011/09/27/1899906/locust-trace-offers-fayett e-students.html 2011
- http://www.farmworldonline.com/News/NewsArticle.aspnewsid=13251 2011
- http://www.wtvq.com/news/9241-fayette-county-students-return-to-class 2011
- http://www.fcps.net/news/features/2011-12/new-farm 2011
- http://www.bizlex.com/Articles-c-2011-08-02-98414.113117-Locust-Trace -Opens-Doors-to-New-Generation-of-Ag-Science-Education.html 2011
- http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wuky/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1703 881/WUKY.Local.News/Construction.of.School.Farm.Underway 2010
- http://www.techcenters.fcps.net/locusttrace/ 2011
- www.Locusttracevet.com 2011
- http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Locust-Trace-AgriScience-Farm/257276 544297973 2011
- http://twitter.com/#!/LocustTrace 2011
- http://www.kentucky.com/2011/09/23/1894238/locust-trace-agriscience-f arm.html 2011
- www.uky.edu/Ag/CLD/ials/index.htm 2010
- http://www.bizlex.com/Articles-c-2011-08-02-98414.113117-Locust-Trace -Opens-Doors-to-New-Generation-of-Ag-Science.html 2011
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Progress 07/01/09 to 06/30/10
Outputs
We are currently teaching Vet Science as part of our Agriscience curriculum. Units taught include: terminology, parasitology, anatomical positioning, pathology, animal handling, first aid, acupuncture, reproduction, vaccination, health care, horsemanship, drug doses, & fecal analyses. Grant purchases have facilitated instruction: animal skeletons, equine model, lunge lines, horse leg wraps, injection kit, fecal kit, acupuncture models, & DVDs. Students are prepared for Vet Science careers by job shadowing, placements, labs, & guest speakers. During 2009-2010, 39 students job shadowed (alpaca farm, veterinarians, agriculture operations, horse trainers). Student placements increased to 11: Farms, Humane Society. Labs included parasitology, animal semen, acupuncture, skeletons, animal models, suturing, fecal analyses, & drug administration. There were 26 guest speakers in 2009-2010. Topics included: UK Ag Ambassadors workshop; Food Science, Animal Byproducts, Food History, Equine Breeds, Tack, Aquaculture, Equine Issues, Fecal Analyses, Equine Meds, ATF, Dog & Handler, Dairy Calves, Sheep/Great Pyrenees, Goats, Steers & Heifers, Mini-Goats & Poultry, Lauras Lean Beef, Large Animal Rescue. Our agreements with 5 post-secondary institutions have resulted 120 student college credit hours. We are pursuing agreements with 2 additional colleges. Students have worked at community events (FFA Livestock Sale, Farm to Field Day, Sheep & Fiber Festival, Bluegrass Fair) & have gone on field trips (Livestock Expo, Equestrian Games, Evans Orchard, Darley Stud, Cobra Farm). Our ag advisory board met 3 times this year and focused on our new Agriscience School. Board members gave input on the school design. Recruiting strategies for our Vet Science program include flyers, brochures, tours, student-run petting zoo & FFA fair display. We also publicize on the District's Local access channel & present to civic organizations (Farm Bureau). Our instructor attended the State Ag Teachers Conference & 3 equine clinics. Student opportunities included the Institute of Future Agricultural Leaders & FFA Conventions. Our instructor was asked to serve on a panel revising Equine & Small Animal Science Curriculum with standards & to provide a workshop on Advisory Councils at our State Conference. We now have a veterinarian who will work at the Agriscience School. Students will be able to observe exams & surgeries. These opportunities & our curriculum will hopefully facilitate KVMA certification for students. Our Vet Science curriculum is not a stand-alone program. We discussed this with our program officer in April 2009. Originally, we hoped to begin construction on the Agriscience School in 2008. We were unable to get the deed to the land until spring 2009, so the construction & staff hiring needed to separate the vet science & ag curriculums were delayed. We now have the deed, & the new school is set to open in Fall 2011. We hired an additional teacher in July 2010 to work with our current Agriscience teacher. The curriculum developed as a result of this grant will serve as a foundation for the separate Vet Science program at our new School. PRODUCTS: Our Vet Science Curriculum is our most substantial grant product to date. Monies from this grant have allowed development of labs with hands-on opportunities to support this curriculum. Grant purchases support both the labs & curriculum (kennels, grooming station, exam tables)& allow students to care for animals. As part of the horsemanship unit, students spent weeks in the Spring 2010 learning to care for, groom & handle, exercise, ride, & sensitize/desensitize the horses. The unit culminated with mounted equestrian drills. OUTCOMES: In 2009-2010, 55 students (7 from farm background) were enrolled in our program. One of the benefits of our new curriculum is that students from urban areas are introduced to agriculture/vet science. 39 of our students job shadowed, & 11 held placements. The FFA program has expanded as a result of interest in the Vet Science program. Our chapter has had 100% membership for 3 years & earned a state award for increased membership. We have had 7 students compete at State FFA speaking events & 1 at a proficiency event. Over the past two years, our seniors have earned 120 hours of college credit. Our outside evaluators found a 20% jump in student knowledge of our vet science program after units were taught. Members of our ag-advisory board, co-op sites, & job shadowing were overwhelmingly positive (100% agree/strongly agree on survey) that the vet science program was motivational, challenging, & fostered community relations. Also in 2010, a new mentoring program, PALS, was implemented. Five students took farm animals to an elementary school, spoke about agricultural products, byproducts, & breeds. Our instructor was asked to serve on a panel realigning Equine & Small Animal Science Curriculum with state & national standards & to provide a workshop on Agriculture Advisory boards at our state conference. Finally, we were nominated as an Extreme Ag Program. Next year we will videotape activities for submission to Texas A & M. We will find out our status in 2011. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: We have several newspaper spotlights on our program of studies & our move to the Agriscience school. We showcase our program & curriculum yearly in the Eastside Technical Center Newsletter. We use email to update our FFA Alumni & ag advisory council. Our district also has a local TV station & web page that we use to advertise our accomplishments. Fayette County Farm Bureau has given us space in their newsletter. By working at the Bluegrass Fair, students promoted our program. Several students have attended civic & ag related groups on our communities to explain about our program. We also created a brochure to provide to potential students/parents. FUTURE INITIATIVES: Vet science studies have center stage to the development of our new Agriscience school. In July 2010, we hired a second teacher so that the vet science & agriscience curriculums could be separated. Once the new school is complete (Fall 2011) our students will participate in management of the animals. We will continue to develop job shadowing & co-op sites. We have partnered with a veterinarian who will work at the new school & who will both care for our animals & mentor our students. We will continue working closely with veterinarians in our state to establish the KVMA certification.
Impacts
We are equipping Fayette County students with skills necessary for careers in the animal industry. We are also providing them with contacts into the industry. This grant enabled us to greatly increase the vet science curriculum & hands-on learning experiences we offer to our students so that they gain valued skills, whether they make animal care their career or their lifelong hobby.
Publications
- Fayette Co Farm Bureau Newsletter July 2009 pg 6 http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CLD/IALS/index.htm 2009 Eastside Update Fall 2008; page 4-5 Eastside Update June 2009; page 3 Lex Herald-Leader Newsppr; August 29, 2009; Fayette Develops Ag School http://136.165.122.102/mambo/content/view/229/73/ BizLexington, October 15, 2009 WUKY, May 13, 2010, Large Animal Rescue
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Progress 07/01/08 to 06/30/09
Outputs
The long term goal of our CSREES grant is to implement a veterinary science program for high school students through Eastside Technical Center. Obj 1:We are currently teaching Veterinary Science as a part of our Agriscience curriculum. Units taught in 2008-09 included: terminology, parasitology, anatomical positioning, disease pathology, animal handling, first aid, accupuncture, reproduction, vaccination and overall health care. Obj 2:Students are prepared for careers in Animal and Veterinary Science by job shadowing, lab activities through CREES grant supplies, and guest speakers. Obj 3:We now have articulation agreements with 5 post-secondary institutions in the state. In Spring 2009, 69 college credit hours were earned by our Eastside Agriscience Srs. Also, we are currently working with Maysville Community College and Bluegrass Career and Tech College for dual enrollment/articulation agreement opportunities. Obj 4:We have increased collaborative activities with UK and community with over 20 guest speakers, 1 student attending Institute for Future Agricultural Leaders, 11 students at UK Ag Round-up, 15 at Fayette County Farm Field Day, numerous activities with Fayette County Farm Bureau, Extension Office, KY Equine Humane Center and others. Our ag advisory board (made of business, educational, and community leaders) meets twice a year. Obj 5:Work on the e-journal continues. Last year students conducted research projects; however, we did not get them submitted into e-journal format. Currently UK grad students are finalizing an e-journal template that we can use. This will be debuted at the National FFA Convention October 2009. We plan to have our top agriscience experiment in that debut event in e-journal format. Obj 6:Recruiting strategies implemented included flyers to distribute during scheduling, brochures in high schools, conducting facility tours of our program to freshmen, and conducting a petting zoo and FFA/Agriscience Display at the Blulegrass Fair. We additionally publicized our vet science program on the District's Local access cable channel during Spring 2009. Obj 7:Instructor has attended animal and veterinary science workshops at State Ag Teachers Conference. We have worked with UK's College of Ag as they helped put in our livestock washrack, spoke to our students, and as we use their facilities as field trip sites and curriculum sites. Obj 8:As of yet, we have not established a certification accepted by KVMA. We hope to address this during 2009-2010. We had substantial growth during the first year of our grant. However, our vet science curriculum is not yet a stand alone program of studies. We discussed our concerns about delays to the curriculum with our program officer, Greg Smith, on April 21st of this year. Our district originally hoped to begin construction late in 2008 on a new agriscience farm where our program will be housed. We were unable to get the deed to the farmland until late spring 2009 so construction as well as the hiring of additional staff needed to separate the vet science and ag curriculums were delayed. We now have the deed and it is our intention to continue as planned with the vet science program. PRODUCTS: The development of our Veterinary Science Curriculum is our biggest product right now. Parasite labs, slides of semen, parasites, and bacteria, accupuncture models, skeletons, animal part models, stitching and suturing kits were purchased to use in implementing the curriculum improvements. As noted in the "Progress" section, these were used in "hands-on" classroom laboratories. Additionally, audiovisual materials were purchased so that the students could learn the basic principles of accupuncture and accupressure. With the approval for construction of our new agriscience facility, we are now able to purchase the larger items needed to assist us in full implementation of our veterinary science program. These items include the kennel and cages for housing overnight animals, grooming station, exam tables, etc. Brochures and articles and flyers are another result of this endeavor. The 69 college credit hours are also a direct result of this program. This past year, students took a vet science pre-quiz before we utilized any of the equipment, materials, and curriculum from the SPEC grant. After the Vet Science unit, a post-unit quiz was administered. Student progress was recorded to show a 20% increase in scores after the vet science unit.Members of the community deemed as stakeholders ie: ag advisory council members, co-op site supervisors, and job shadowing site supervisors were surveyed by our external evaluator in Spring 2009. The results were overwhelmingly positive (100% agree/strongly agree) with stakeholders feeling that the vet science program thus far was benificial, motivated learning, challenged students, dealt with contemporary issues, and enhanced community relations. OUTCOMES: Last year 57 students were enrolled in the Agriscience courses which implemented the new Veterinary Science Curriculum. Only 5 of these come from farm backgrounds. So, the majority of our students are from urban areas and have been introduced to the agriculture/veterinary science for the first time. Reports are not in at this time to calculate transition rates but our school does these annually. We did have 69 hours of college credit earned by graduating seniors. Our outside evaluators tracked student gains with pre and post quizzes of veterinary science. Quiz scores show a 20% jump in knowledge of vet science curriculum after the vet science unit was covered. Our ag advisory Board met 4 times during 2008 and 2009 to discuss and plan development of the new agriscience school (including the veterinary science program) and aligning the curriculum with industry standards. Members of the board include: farmers, state ag officials, community members, extension personnel, conservation officials, CEO's, Farm Bureau Board members, university personnel, large and small animal vets, and others. Our evaluators surveyed the board regarding progress on the program to date. Results of the survey were very favorable as discussed in the Products section. We had a number of students job shadow in the ag industry (15 students shadowed equine veterinarians every saturday from Feb-May, 1 went to alpaca farm, 6 shadowed production ag, 4 shadowed small animal veterinarians, 12 shadowed Thoroughbred trainers. We also had 2 students work Keeneland Thoroughbred Yearling Sales, 2 work in production ag placements, 1 work in Small Animal Services, 2 work in equine recreation services. Our FFA program has expanded as well. This is a direct result of increased interest in the Vet Science program. We had 5 students compete at the State level in speaking events and 1 in a proficiency event. As a chapter we enjoyed 100% membership for the second year in a row and earned an award at the state convention for highest percentage increase in membership numbers. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: We have utilized several media sources to disseminate information about and advertise for our program. We have several local newspaper spotlights on our program as it brings animal and veterinary science studies to students in and around Fayette County. The newspaper also has been used to explain about our move to the Agriscience school, located on the recently acquired 80 acre tract of land and just what that will mean to our students and the curriculum we can offer. We showcase our program and curriculum yearly in the Eastside Technical Center Newsletter that goes to to parents and advisory council members. We use email to update our FFA Alumni and ag advisory council. Our district also has a local TV station and web page that we sometimes use to advertise our program and accomplishments. Our Fayette County Farm Bureau has given us space in their newsletter that circulates to their members. By working at the Bluegrass Fair, students were able to promote our program. Several students have attended local civic and ag related groups on our communities to explain about our program and its achievements. We also created a brochure to pass out or make available where appropriate to advertise the curriculum of the program and opportunities both through the FFA and the agriscience program. FUTURE INITIATIVES: Veterinary science studies have center stage to the development of our new Agriscience school. During the coming year we hope to purchase larger equipment, develop the vet science curriculum more fully and increase opportunities for our students. Once the school is complete our students will have daily access to animals, large and small, instead of relying on field trips and guest speakers to bring them to us. Through the breeding, feeding, management, and care, they will apply basic veterinary science techniques every day. Their exposure to the realities of the industry will become inherent. We will continue to utilize our community to the fullest for job shadowing and co-op sites. We already have plans to have veterinarians perform basic surgical procedures at our school and the option of a veterinarian housing their clinic at our site is not outside the realm of possibility. This would again increase student exposure to skills, knowledge, resources, equipment, management, etc. Besides enough room for large animal production and handling, we will also have plenty of room for small animal production and handling. We will strive to increase the opportunities and skill level of our students. We will continue working closely with veterinarians in our state to establish the vet science certification and to provide a rigorous curriculum.
Impacts
We are equipping the students in Fayette County with the job skills necessary for careers in the animal industry, large or small. We are also providing them with valued contacts into the industry. Previously, no veterinary science education courses were being offered in our county. Now, students have access to curriculum to gain valued skills, whether they make animal care their career or their lifelong hobby.
Publications
- Fayette County Farm Bureau Newsletter July 2009 page 6
- http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CLD/IALS/index.htm 2009
- Eastside Update Fall 2008; page 4-5
- Eastside Update June 2009; page 3
- Lexington Herald-Leader Newspaper; August 29, 2009; "Fayette Develops Ag School"
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