The Mount Vernon Community School District received a number of donations for their ag and natural resources education program moving forward.
At January’s board meeting, Tim Keegan presented an update on the funding the district has received to offer the program, including a $5,000 per year donation from the Linn County Farm Bureau for the class.
“In October we started talking with a few community members about their interest in donating to jump start an Ag & Natural Resources education program within the district,” Keegan said. “Since then, there have been more than $180,000 pledged in total over the next five years.”
Those donations, Keegan said, will all be funneled to the Mount Vernon Community School District Foundation to support the programs.
The goal for the district was to have more than $200,000 pledged over the next five years, which will allow the school to use funds on developing this career and technical education field of study.
“We are very excited about the jump start in financial support of an ag education program the district has received and want to thank the initial donors,” Keegan said.
Ag and natural resources programs are offered at 2,800 schools in the state of Iowa.
“Mount Vernon School District is in the minority, not offering nor ever having a program,” Keegan said. “Neighboring districts like Lisbon, Clear Creek-Amana, Center Point-Urbana, and Cedar Rapids Prairie have all recently offered programs with great success and increase in student involvement.”
The state has seen six new programs initiated across the state since September 2024, many in urban areas.
Keegan said that with school finances being very tight, it is hard to launch a new program or initiative without seeking outside donations.
“We feel getting this commitment not only shows the support for an ag and natural resources program from the community, but also gives the school the flexibility to move forward at a faster pace that might not take place otherwise,” Keegan said.
The school is looking to offer a few classes centered around ag and natural resources in the 2025-26 school year.
“This curriculum will most likely be taught by current staff that will apply for a voucher through the state for certification,” Keegan said. “At this time, partnering with a neighboring school district does not appear feasible due to scheduling conflicts. Our goal is to grow the program internally. This will allow us to develop and understand the student interest.”
The long-term goal for the district is to have a full time instructor for the Ag and Natural Resources curriculum that can also facilitate the FFA club program associated with this curriculum.