Honoring Our Roots, Growing Tomorrow’s Leaders: An Agriculture Education Initiative

Wingate High School, a Bureau of Indian Education institution located in the heart of the Navajo Nation, serves a diverse student body, including individuals from various Native communities such as Navajo, Jicarilla, Mescalero, White Mountain Apache, and several Pueblos. Many of these students come from backgrounds rich in agricultural traditions, whether through communal farming or more commercial practices like chili and cattle production, reflecting the integral role of agriculture in their cultural identity as Diné people. The Honoring Our Roots, Growing Tomorrow’s Leaders: An Agriculture Education Initiative project aims to enhance agricultural education and community involvement among Native youth. Key objectives include hiring a full-time Agriculture Education Teacher to develop a student-centered curriculum aligned with New Mexico’s educational standards and integrate financial literacy and business plan development. The initiative will also support the teacher’s professional growth through conference attendance, establish a local FFA chapter to promote student leadership, and organize the 2nd Annual Agriculture Career Fair to connect youth with agricultural pathways. Furthermore, a community livestock sale will provide students with hands-on experience while fostering agricultural entrepreneurship. The initiative aspires to launch agriculture classes, recruit and retain students, host educational workshops, and generate revenue to support student projects, strengthening the foundation for future Native agriculturalists and their communities.