Meet a few of the new agricultural education teachers in the state of Michigan!

Sam Ludlam, Dundee

A member of Hopkins FFA, past state officer, state convention staff, 4-H member, and member of various agricultural organizations, Sam chose to become an agricultural educator due to her passion for the AFNR (agriculture, food, and natural resources) and youth development. She is looking forward to being part of a new community, building relationships with community members, and helping her students reach their potential. She says, “Every day and every hour are different, as well, which is great! Teaching overall is a very challenging profession, but it is a challenge I am more than happy to meet every day.” By far, her favorite course to teach is animal science or zoology!

Jasmine McClattchie, USA

A member of FFA, Collegiate Farm Bureau, Dairy Club, and the L.E.A.F. Club, Jasmine chose to teach agriculture due to her passion for the diverse industry and working with students. Jasmine says, “That ‘ah-ha!’ moment when the light bulb goes off for them or the spark of curiosity and passion is lit is so rewarding.” She is excited to get to know students, co-workers, and community members, and participating in FFA events while dealing with the challenges of Covid-19. After working at a dairy farm helping custom raise Jersey heifers, her favorite topic to teach is about the dairy industry.

Chase Bos, Newaygo Tech Center

Chase was an active member in the FFA organization and 4-H showing various livestock. His passion for agricultural education started due to his agricultural teacher. After his ag teacher suggested to Chase about teaching agriculture, Chase said, “I liked that I would be able to do something different every day and I would get to work with great students, plants, and animals all throughout the year.” He is excited for the opportunity for all of the students to gain hands-on experience within all of the facilities at the tech center despite not being able to have all students in class due to the pandemic. His favorite subjects to teach are anything that involve being hands-on, especially farrowing pigs.

Josephine Forbush, Milan

Josephine was an active member of the Byron FFA Chapter and served on the 2016-17 State Officer team. She is most excited to work with a chapter that has mostly new members. Josephine is looking forward to seeing students with little agricultural experience discover a wide range of opportunities. Like most teachers, she is finding a challenge with how to do certain lessons with the regulations. Josephine chose to teach agriculture due to its wide range of topics and working with students. Josephine says, “For me, being an ag teacher was an easy choice because it combines all my passions into one career.” Her favorite subject to teach is natural resources and ecosystems!

By: Zoey Zupin