Stay Informed

If Megan Ramsey’s life could be said to have a theme, that theme is kids.

She and her husband, Joe, are the parents of four daughters, and she coaches her local high school’s gymnastics team. In addition, she worked as a physical therapy aide with children, she volunteers with the PTA, she’s “passionate about 4-H,” and she’s a Girl Scout leader.

“Kids have just always been part of my life,” said Ramsey.

In recognition of this focus on kids, Ramsey was recently named Indiana Farm Bureau’s 2021 Ag in the Classroom Volunteer of the Year.

“The Volunteer of the Year Award honors an AITC volunteer or a classroom educator who has gone above and beyond for the AITC program in educating the public about the important role agriculture plays in our everyday lives,” said Lindi Kocher, Indiana Farm Bureau’s education coordinator. “Megan Ramsey consistently demonstrates quality leadership and the ability to take initiative.”

Ramsey has been an AITC volunteer since 2014, and in that time, she has reached more than 2,000 students. Most of her focus is on Morristown Elementary, where she works with students in kindergarten through fifth grade. She also sometimes teaches kids at the local library or at her church’s preschool.

As for what those AITC sessions consist of, Ramsey rotates through several different lessons. For grades 3-5, she often helps the kids make plastic out of corn oil, corn starch, water and food coloring. For younger kids, she sometimes focuses on popcorn, including a taste test. She’s also shown kids how to make pumpkin pie in a bag.

“They love anything with food,” Ramsey said.

“I always have an ag-accurate book that goes along with it,” she added. “That’s how you get ag literacy in my lessons.”

She also relates the lessons directly to the grain farm that she and Joe operate with his dad and brother.

“Megan's lessons have been not only useful but impactful to my students,” said Machelle Edwards, who teaches 2^nd grade at Morristown Elementary. “She offers engaging lessons that students remember for years to come. She promotes agriculture on a level that students understand.”

The AITC program itself is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “In the early 1980s, the USDA had a special committee that was looking at the value of ag education and how to reach students who aren’t your traditional ag-ed students,” Kocher explained. The committee also looked at how the program should be structured on the state level.

“In many states, including Indiana, Farm Bureau became the organization that coordinates the program,” Kocher said. In 2021, INFB coordinated the efforts of 128 AITC volunteers who reached approximately 50,000 students across the state.

“Our volunteers come from our membership and their passion for the agriculture industry,” Kocher said. “Megan is a perfect example of this wave of new volunteers. She’s really making an impact in her local community.”

To find out more about the AITC program, visit www.infb.org/INFBAgEd.