Not Your Ordinary Professional Development
Register today for the Summer AgriCULTURE Institutes. 

The Colorado Foundation for Agriculture offers a professional development program for educators called the Food, Fiber, and More Summer AgriCULTURE Institutes. These Institutes are five-day courses, designed for teachers. Attendees learn about Colorado agriculture, tour farms, ranches, and food production facilities, and learn innovative, standards-based ways to incorporate food, fiber, fuel, and natural resource topics into academic curricula. Teachers are able to earn Continuing Education Units or graduate level credits from Colorado State University by completing the course.

This is not your typical professional development class. Only two days are spent in a classroom. The rest of the time you are outside, experiencing and learning about agriculture!

Registration is open for the two courses offered in 2021 and is limited to the first 30 participants per course. Both courses will be held in-person, while following current CDPHE COVID-19 guidelines. Click on each course name to access the registration form.

SAI 101: Grand Junction – July 12-16, 2021:  This is a beginners course and explores agriculture on the Western Slope. This course is perfect for educators who want to learn about Colorado agriculture and the Agriculture in the Classroom program. Featured topics include beef production, fruit trees, water, grapes and wine-making, and more. If you live near Grand Junction or want to learn about the diversity of agriculture in that region, this is the course for you! Click here to register for SAI 101: Grand Junction.

SAI 201: Brighton/Front Range – July 19-23, 2021: This is a next-level course, designed for educators who have previously attended a Summer AgriCULTURE Institute, currently teach agricultural and environmental topics, use Agriculture in the Classroom resources/programs, or have an understanding of basic agricultural concepts. This course takes a deeper dive into the most important agriculture topics to Colorado (beef and dairy production, produce, water, school and urban gardens, plus more) – following agriculture from farm to fork. Click here to register for SAI 201: Brighton/Front Range.

More information is available on the SAI Registration page at GrowingYourFuture.com.
Colorado Reader - The Story of Colorado Beef
Students will examine the importance of the beef cattle industry, including where cattle are produced in Colorado, the beef production life cycle, and the key role cattle play in a sustainable food system. Concepts related to Colorado land use and careers in agriculture are also introduced.
Colorado Reader - Corn: It's Feed. It's Fuel. It's Food. It's Everything!
Of all the crops grown in Colorado, corn is king! Learn about the different types of corn grown in Colorado, the corn plant life cycle, and the many uses of corn.
May Featured Resources
We Want You!
Applications open for the 2022 Outstanding Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher Award 

Do you teach your students about food and the environment? Maybe you work with students in a school garden. Or perhaps you have a creative approach for connecting students to their food, fiber, fuel, or natural resources. The Colorado Foundation for Agriculture wants to recognize Colorado educators who teach students about the importance of agriculture through CFA's Outstanding Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher Award.

The award is open to any Colorado teacher currently engaged in teaching at the preK-12 grade levels. The award will be given based on the teacher’s creative efforts to integrate agriculture into his or her instruction and curricula to increase agricultural literacy. An agriculturally literate person is defined as “one who understands and can communicate the source and value of agriculture as it affects our quality of life.”

District certified teachers that are currently engaged in integrating agricultural concepts into non-agricultural education settings at the preK-12 grade levels are eligible. Applications may be from an individual or a team of teachers working together. Middle and high school agricultural educators are not eligible for this award.

The winning Colorado teacher will receive a $500 monetary award and have up to $1,500 of his or her related expenses paid to attend the National Agriculture in the Classroom (NAITC) Conference June 28-July 1, 2022 in Saratoga Springs, New York. Please refer to the application for further eligibility and award information.

The deadline for application submission is October 15, 2021. The application may be found using the links below or contact Jennifer Scharpe, Colorado Foundation for Agriculture executive director at Info@GrowingYourFuture.com or 970-818-3308.

2022 Application

Samples of applications from previous state and national award winners are available on the Outstanding Teacher Award page at GrowingYourFuture.com.
Get Ready for "Fields of Dreams"
Participate In-Person or Virtually 

We a little more than one month away from the 2021 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference "Fields of Dreams" scheduled for June 28-July 1 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa. The "hybrid" conference offers an in-person option for people who can travel and a live streaming/Zoom option for people who can not travel.
 
Keynote speakers include Dr. Anton Treuer, author and professor of Ojibwe at Bemidji State University in Minnesota, who will discuss transformative teaching and how to infuse equity tools in classroom instruction; and Nicole Jolly, producer of True Food TV, who will talk about how storytelling involving food and farmers "connects, illuminates and inspires" teachers and students. 
 
Traveling workshops will visit the Dr. Norman Borlaug World Food Prize Hall of Laureates and the Iowa Arboretum, among other stops. Onsite workshops range from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade and cover topics such as harvesting wind energy, embryology and the language arts, science and math involved in school gardening, to name a few.
 
Important conference information is as follows: 

In-Person Registration - 
  • Before June 1, 2021 - $435
  • June 2-June 14, 2021 - $485
  • June 15, 2021-Onsite - $535

Virtual Conference Registration -
  • Until June 28, 2021 - $50
Apply for a $100 Resource Grant

Applications are open! Christina Sue Lilja Resource Grants (formerly known as White-Reinhardt Resource Grants) are made possible by the CSL Foundation.

The CSL Foundation was established to carry on late American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture (AFBFA) director Christy Lilja's beliefs of helping others in need and to continue to advocate for educating K-12 teachers and students about the importance of agriculture.

The purpose of these grants is to provide funds to educators to enable them to purchase accurate agricultural literacy materials from the AFBFA store for use in their classrooms. By providing this grant, AFBFA hopes to help students gain access to more accurate information about agriculture.

Applications close June 30. Learn more by clicking here.
Journey 2050 Program Updates

Nutrien, Ltd., the creator of the educational gaming platform Journey 2050, has exciting new program, game, and website updates in the works! Look for announcements to come on the Journey 2050 Facebook page and highlighted on the website. 
  
Help Nutrien reach its goal of 1 million users of Farmers 2050. This real-life farm game lets players plant, cultivate, and harvest crops. Players craft, trade and sell goods, learning all aspects of farming. Start or join a team to complete in Global Events highlighting sustainability across the globe! Please email NAITCO Program Manager and Journey 2050/Farmers 2050 coordinator Tessa Matuszak at program@naitco.org with any questions.
Colorado Foundation for Agriculture Opens Search for Board, Advisor Members

The Colorado Foundation for Agriculture is seeking candidates to serve on its board of directors and advisory committee. Applications are due July 15, 2021 and may be found at GrowingYourFuture.com.

The Colorado Foundation for Agriculture (CFA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit education corporation with the vision of advancing agricultural literacy in the next generation of citizens, consumers, and professionals. CFA's mission is connecting Colorado educators and students to their food, fiber, fuel, and natural resources. A seven- to nine-member voting board of directors governs the Foundation. The 12-member non-voting advisory committee helps guide the board on the development of resources and programs.

If you have a passion for advancing agricultural literacy, please consider applying. The task of helping our young people understand where their food comes from is a great one and we need dedicated individuals to help reach this goal.

**The application is due July 15, 2021.***

More information is available on the Board of Directors and Advisory Committee page at GrowingYourFuture.com.
Ways you can support Colorado Agriculture in the Classroom
Link your King Soopers/City Market loyalty card and support the Colorado Foundation for Agriculture every time you shop. Visit the King Soopers Community Rewards page to sign up for this free program.
Thank you to all who gave to CFA during Colorado Gives Day on Tuesday, December 8, 2020. If you haven't yet made a contribution, you may set up your gift at any time through the Community First Foundation.
You Shop. Amazon Gives. Every time you shop, AmazonSmile donates to the Colorado Foundation for Agriculture.
Help Fill the Apple!
As this school year comes to a close, we want to thank all of our sponsors so far for the 2020-2021 fiscal year. Please take a moment to check out all of our sponsors. Despite the craziness of the year, we have continued the important work of connecting students and educators to their food, fiber, fuel, and natural resources. If you haven't yet made your annual contribution, there's still time - especially as we gear up to host two Summer AgriCULTURE Institutes for teachers in July.

Join our Fill the Apple Campaign by making your tax-deductible gift today. We are about half-way to our fundraising goal for this school year and could use your support. Help us #FillTheApple by visiting: www.GrowingYourFuture.com/donate

We are aware that some donations have been lost in the mail. If you made a gift this year and you are not listed on our sponsor page, please contact us.

Make your contribution today at https://bit.ly/givecfa.

Giving is not just about making a donation.
It's about making a difference!