American Farmers and Ranchers (AFR) youth programs are giving Oklahoma students opportunities to explore the many areas of agriculture while developing leadership, public speaking and career skills. From elementary school students to college-aged young adults, AFR Youth and Education Coordinator Cara Comstock says the organization offers a variety of programs designed to help young people discover their interests and find ways to make an impact in their communities. Comstock caught up with associate farm reporter Carli Davenport at a recent AG in the classroom meeting.
“We provide a lot of different opportunities across the state for youth, really starting in that first grade lower elementary school, all the way up through college and beyond,” Comstock said. One of AFR’s featured programs is its annual Youth Leadership Summit, which is designed for incoming seventh through 12th graders. The summer program focuses on connecting students with agriculture and cooperative systems while helping them strengthen their leadership abilities. “That’s a program focused on incoming seventh through 12th graders to really connect them to agriculture and cooperative systems, and also help them utilize and develop their personal leadership skills,” Comstock said.
Students also learn how to use those skills to make a difference beyond the classroom. “Theyre able to learn how they can take those skills and make a broader impact back in their home and community,” she said.
The Youth Leadership Summit is a four-day, three-night camp hosted in Binger, Oklahoma. Registration is expected to open online in the spring, with a registration fee listed online.
Comstock said AFR also wants to make sure financial barriers do not prevent students from participating. “If students need help covering that, we’re happy to help provide scholarships because we want every student to be able to experience that and gain those leadership skills,” Comstock said.
In addition to the summer summit, AFR hosts events throughout the year that emphasize leadership and career development. Those opportunities include livestock handling, cattle grading, speech contests and poster contests.
AFR Speech Contests Build Agricultural Knowledge and Public Speaking Skills
One of the organization’s largest youth events is its annual speech contest, which gives students an opportunity to research agricultural topics, strengthen their industry knowledge and practice public speaking.
AFR plans to host five area speech contests across Oklahoma, with the top contestants advancing to the state competition during the first weekend in December. Comstock said the organization expects approximately 600 contestants across the state’s contests.
The competition is open to students in third through 12th grade. “That’s a really amazing opportunity for students in third through 12th grade to do research on agricultural topics, work on their agricultural knowledge, their public speaking skills, and then being able to answer questions over the topics that they’ve researched,” Comstock said.
She said it is impressive to see the amount of research students put into their presentations and how effectively they communicate what they have learned. “It’s pretty phenomenal to see what those students can research, the information that they gain, and then how well they can articulate and speak on those topics that they’ve done their research on,” Comstock said.
Emerging Agricultural Technologies Attract Student Interest
As agriculture continues to evolve, Comstock said young people are finding opportunities to get involved in many different areas of the industry.
Rather than seeing students gravitate toward one particular segment, she said their interests reflect the diversity of modern agriculture. “There’s just so many different emerging technologies in agriculture that there’s really something for everyone,” Comstock said.
Some students are drawn to the science and technology side of the industry, including drones and GPS systems. Others are more interested in hands-on experiences and pursuing careers in livestock production. “Some students are more interested in the science and technology side, drones, GPS systems. Some students are really wanting to get back to kind of the roots and hands-on and go into production livestock,” she said.
Comstock said AFR wants to expose students to the different opportunities available so they can discover where their interests and abilities fit within agriculture. “I think it’s just being able to provide all of those different opportunities, show students what’s available, and figure out what really fits their skill sets and their interest is really what students are most enjoying learning about diversity in agriculture,” Comstock said.
Through its leadership summit, speech competitions and other educational events, AFR continues to introduce Oklahoma students to the many career paths available in agriculture while helping prepare the next generation of agricultural leaders.
