Shaping Future Farmers

Esteemed agriculture and Future Farmers of America teacher Shannon Watling, who teaches at School of Dreams Academy in Los Lunas, has spent years nurturing her students’ education while leading the school’s robust FFA program.

However, when asked by her students about what she is doing for herself, Watling said she couldn’t give them an answer.

“I heard somebody saying you should apply for (the National Teacher Ambassadors for FFA program) and I doubted myself. I didn’t think I was good enough for it,” said Watling.

“Back in January, one of my students said, ‘You need to do something that’s a bullet point on your resume, that you did, versus a bullet point of what we did,”’ Watling recalled. “They said, ‘You’re a mom, you’re a teacher, but what are you doing for yourself?’”

Inspired by her students, Watling said this realization motivated her to take a chance and apply for the program that sought applicants from all across the nation.

According to a press release from the National FFA Organization, “The National Teacher Ambassadors for FFA program is a unique program that informs and develops teachers while allowing teachers to help National FFA remain relevant with today’s educational landscape.”

In April, Watling was excited to learn she was selected along with 63 others from across the nation to participate in the coveted program. Watling is only one of two teachers in New Mexico to be a 2024-25 FFA National Teacher Ambassador.

“The teacher ambassadors serve as a resource for teachers in their home states as well as those across the country, supporting other teachers in their professional growth and development,” the press release states. “They also can share feedback with the National FFA leadership about the changing educational landscape they are experiencing and how it can impact the National FFA Organization as a whole.”

Watling said she is excited to learn from and train with other FFA teachers from across the nation through the program, which lasts a year.

“We’ve already started collaborating and I’m completely blown away,” said Watling. “There’s a lot of stuff that they’re bringing to the table, and you get to see what agriculture looks like across the country because you have teachers coming from every different industry and what we’re doing here in New Mexico is going to look totally different than what they’re doing in Maine or in Alaska.”

To begin, all of this year’s ambassadors went to Indianapolis recently for a full week to be trained on proper ways of conducting workshops and presenting information.

“They’ll also teach us about some of the new technological innovations within FFA,” said Watling. “Then in October, we’re responsible for developing and giving a workshop to students and teachers at the National FFA Convention.”

Watling said these professional development opportunities are important because they allow her to stay up-to-date on new agricultural innovations, which allows her to better prepare her students for what’s to come in the ever-evolving agriculture industry.

Through the ambassador program, Watling will be mentoring teachers both locally and nationally.

“My job is to take the information that they give us from the national (FFA) office, and through my professional development, and relay it on to New Mexico teachers,” she said.

Watling has become “a library of resources” for other educators, especially those who may not have someone to guide them.

Watling said this would include providing engaging lesson plan ideas, which would especially be helpful to new or upcoming ag teachers “to give them the right footing to where they can step into something and feel comfortable with it.”

Watling said FFA has been a big part of her life since she was 8 years old, continuing into high school, and she even participated in collegiate FFA. She then began her teaching career in Texas and has been teaching agriculture ever since.

“Agriculture provides us with the air, food, shelter and clothing that we need, so I think it’s really cool because I love science, I love math and I love how the two worlds meet (in agriculture), and I love providing for others,” she said.

Watling began SODA’s FFA program in 2016, and under her guidance the program has received numerous accolades, and the student’s have proved they are a force to be reckoned with in FFA competitions. Most recently, they received their first ever American FFA degree award recipient and learned they are the No. 1 dairy judging team in the state, so she is excited to announce that SODA’s FFA team will be headed to nationals in October.

“Those are two massive things that are going on for us at the national convention that we’re going to be receiving recognition for,” said Watling. “We’re super proud of that because they’re not things that just come to you by filling out a grant or filling out a sheet of paper; it’s really learning by doing.”

SODA Superintendent Mike Ogas said Watling is an extraordinary person who brings not only a strong work ethic, but overall excellence to her teaching.

“In my opinion, she is the best in the state and one of the best in the country in terms of what she does with FFA and it shows,” said Ogas.

Watling said hands-on learning is important to her teaching, and also emphasizing to students the “why” behind what they’re learning.

“Once you find the buy-in of why you need to know something, then you’re more obligated to listen and pay attention, making things fun, interesting and collaborative,” she said.

While Watling loves what she does and enjoys SODA and the support of the administration, she aspires to apply her passion and knowledge of farming and agriculture beyond teaching one day.

“I’ve kind of joked around and said, ‘Maybe someday, I’ll work for the National FFA office.’ That would be interesting, to kind of touch all of the states in some way instead of just my own,” she said. “Being an ambassador is a small step in that direction, and I hope that someday my path leads me to be more involved in the national office to give back and make sure we have sustainability of this organization.”

Cowboy Country 2024 (VCNB articles)