Submitted by: Rene? McCracken, Director of Agriculture NTCC
A group of Northeast Texas Community College sustainable agriculture students and faculty †attended the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Conference (SAWG) in Mobile, Alabama January 15-17.†This international conference has been encouraging and fostering a network of sustainable agriculturists and farmers for 24 years.†In fact, it was this SAWG conference in 2012 that I learned for the first time about the wonderful opportunities and resources we have here at NTCC †with the Whatley Agriculture Complex and, ultimately, led to my acceptance of my current position here.
Thanks to a Whatley Foundation Enhancement grant and a strongly supportive administration, I was not only able to attend the conference this year but also took three of our students to participate in the trade show as well. Over 2,000 farmers, educators and sustainable enthusiasts from as far as the Virgin Islands came together to share knowledge and ?swap? stories. This year they introduced a new scholarship opportunity called ?Tales from the South?.††I was thrilled to be one of three recipients that was awarded a free registration to read my story (How Lucky Bob the Rooster Got His Name) live at the banquet with an audience of over 1,000.††I was stunned to also learn that the entire program was recorded for National Public Radio and would be transmitted internationally to over 23,000 radio stations!
One of the great breakout sessions included pest management for greenhouse which I have already put to use in the classroom and our greenhouse at NTCC Farm.††Another interesting topic was that of the planning and operation of Food Hubs.††Contacts and networking with those foundations and groups could provide our college the mentoring it needs to create a similar program in Mount Pleasant to the benefit of our students and community!
Some of the session topics and materials gleaned from the SAWG Conference will be incorporated into our sustainable classes and especially in the Backyard Homesteading Series continuing ed courses that will be starting in February.††If you would like more information on sustainable agriculture courses at NTCC contact Rene? McCracken at 903-434-8267 or†rmccracken@ntcc.edu.
I would like to mention and thank the agriculture students who made us so proud at the conference.††Sharing the experience with students Blake Rice, Hannah Johnson and Cyruss Ragsdale definitely made the trip worth while.
We are already in the planning stages to attend the next SAWG Conference in Lexington, Kentucky on January 27, 2016!† We would love to take more students, as well as community farmers and ranchers, with us next year.††For more information on SAWG and opportunities to attend the 2016 conference contact Rene? McCracken.
