Summary 2019 — Utah

State Contact

Ms Denise Stewardson
Utah Agriculture in the Classroom
2315 Old Main Hill
Logan, UT 84322
P: 435.797.1592
E: denise.stewardson@usu.edu
Website

Classroom Resources

"Bee Line" PreK-12 online newsletter: Utah AITC publishes this newsletter three times annually (fall, winter, spring). "AgroWorld" secondary e-zine: Focuses on three curriculum areas: science, technology, and society. Four issues/year (Sept-Oct, Nov-Dec, Feb-March, April-May). New/revised resources were added to Utah AITC website at www.utah.agclassroom.org: Utah Agriculture Activity Map Gr. 9-12 Beef, Making the Grade Gr. 3-5 Right This Very Minute Gr. 9-12 Carbon Hoofprints: Cows and Climate Change Gr. 9-12 A Tale of Two Burgers: Beef & Plant-based Protein Gr. 6-8 A Recipe for Genetics: Selective Breeding and Transgenics All lessons are available for free download at utah.agclassroom.org Utah AITC website integrates our resources into a dynamic searchable curriculum map with core standards, lessons, and additional resources that are accessed in the Teacher Center along with our online course. The resources may be browsed freely, but teachers may also save to a personal library. Our social media presence includes a Facebook page (Utah Agriculture in the Classroom), Twitter account (Utah InterAgtion), Instagram (utahaitc) and a Pinterest account (Utah Agriculture in the Classroom).

Major Program Impacts or Outcomes

Approximately 126,000 students were taught with Utah AITC-created, statewide mandatory instructional units in science (4th grade soils, 5th grade heredity, 6th grade microorganisms), K-6 nutrition, College & Career Awareness (7th grade). 18 K-12 teachers completed the Utah AITC online course, Food, Land & People. Each teacher reaches between 25 and 100 students with 10-20 hours of classroom instruction to meet state standards (total of approximately 610 students in 2016). 641 preservice students from eight institutions of higher education received AITC instruction in science and social studies. The Utah State Office of Education conducted Year 2 piloting of 11 Utah AITC agriculture lessons in its required College & Career Awareness instruction--approximately 730 teachers and 25,000 students.

Biosketch

Denise Stewardson is an Extension Associate Professor at Utah State University and statewide Director of the Utah Agriculture in the Classroom program. Denise taught Career & Technical Education for five years in middle and high school programs in Maryland and Virginia. She has been at Utah State University as a conference planner (1990-1995) and an educator for 19 years. In addition to her AITC director responsibilities, Denise teaches a breadth social science course in food literacy for Utah State University, College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, and USU 1010--a first-year experience course for USU freshmen.