Agriculture in the Classroom says its plan to expand ag education programs in Manitoba is a step closer to reality after the Manitoba Egg Farmers (MEF) pledged multi-year financial backing.
The financial commitment was announced in a Sept. 26 news release.
“There is a recognition that most of the population is moving further and further away from knowing where their food comes from,” said Catherine Kroeker-Klassen, Manitoba Egg Farmers chair, in a statement to the Co-operator.
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“At the same time, there is greater interest in nutrition and healthy living. When that emphasis is happening in the home, kids pick up on that.”
The egg farmers have said this is why they decided to offer $75,000 over three years to Agriculture in the Classroom Manitoba (AITC-M). The organization has previously supported the program in one-year increments.
“In MEF’s view, AITC-M is the perfect organization to reach educators with accurate information about the agriculture industry in Manitoba,” the industry group said. “They have demonstrated a commitment to high-quality resources and programs such as the farm tours MEF participated in during the pandemic.”
The funding will support the plan to increase the number of educators in Manitoba who use its resources to 15 per cent from the current nine per cent by 2026, AITC-M said in an emailed statement.
Agriculture in the Classroom encourages its partners to commit to three years of funding so it can spend less time on fundraising and more time working in classrooms and expanding its reach.
Doing that will likely require hiring more staff, such as an education specialist.
“Having another person on our team with education and curriculum experience will jump start our ability to create new resources, update existing resources to reflect any changes in Manitoba curriculum and ensure all our offerings continue to be high quality and Monday morning ready for teachers,” AITC-M said.
