NACTA Newsletter - April 2024

April 2024

• NACTA President Nick Fuhrman's Message
• Featured Member, Cheryl Wachenheim
• Register for the NACTA 2024 Conference
• NACTA Conference Tours Available
• New NACTA Members
• How to Renew Your NACTA Membership

NACTA Roundup with President Nick Fuhrman

NACTA President Nick Fuhrman talks about the NACTA Judging Conference, the upcoming conference in Wooster, Ohio, and more! Thank you, Nick!

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Featured Member, Cheryl Wachenheim

Each month we sit down with a member to highlight their academic and professional career, and to see how they are making the best of their membership in NACTA. This month’s Featured Member is the upcoming NACTA President, Cheryl Wachenheim.

How long have you been a member of NACTA?
I have been a member for nearly 30 years, although my record-keeping does not extend that far back. I published my first NACTA Journal article in 2001.

Looking at your time with the Association, what have you most enjoyed doing?
I very much enjoy the people. I loved working with Rick and Marilyn Parker, and have very much enjoyed working and visiting with NACTA members throughout the years. The annual conference is a highlight for me each year. I learn so much about teaching and am surrounded with those who share my passion for teaching and learning.

What interesting things are you working on outside of the Association right now?
I am doing a one-year term as Interim Chair of Agribusiness and Applied Economics at NDSU. This has been an amazing opportunity to work with all my departmental colleagues and those within and outside of the university. I enjoy spending as much time as possible with my college-aged children and have continued to learn so much from them about what works in teaching, and how young folks view the world. I remain in the Minnesota Army National Guard, and taking some time each month to put on the uniform and challenge myself is very rewarding. Life is simply wonderful!

What is your most memorable teaching moment?
Two things stand out. One was early in my career when I thought it would be a good idea to take my urban student general education class in Agriculture in Developing Countries out to the university farm. In an attempt to show them how technology can speed up progression of agriculture in developing countries, we demonstrated the steps of artificial insemination as a means to improve the beef herd. This certainly did not turn out as planned, but like many things that go wrong, thinking back on it makes me smile every time. The second is having the opportunity to catch a ride on a Blackhawk in Afghanistan to tutor a student in my online class who was deployed to a base in the same province as Afghanistan. Everyday in the classroom brings at least one happy and memorable moment. 

With the 70th Annual NACTA Conference coming up in Wooster, Ohio in June, what are you most looking forward to/most excited about with the conference?
Hands down seeing old friends and meeting new friends. I am also excited to learn/steal at least a few new effective experimental teaching techniques to bring back to my own classroom.

As the upcoming President of NACTA, what are you most excited about for the new position and do you have any plans/ideas for the Association as the next president?
I am excited to continue working with a great group of dedicated leaders and a membership that cares about teaching and gives so very much to the organization. It is very amazing to see all the parts that come together and how dedicated folks are in this all-volunteer organization. It is a pleasure to serve as President of this member-led organization.

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Register for the NACTA 2024 Conference!

There's still time to register for the 70th Annual NACTA Conference! This year's conference will be held June 24-28 in Wooster, Ohio! At the Annual NACTA Conference, you will be able to connect with and learn from others who share the same passion for the improvement of teaching and learning in agriculture, food and natural resources. The Annual NACTA conference will provide you with new teaching techniques, ideas and resources. It is also one of the best professional development activities for networking with other teaching professionals where the common discipline is “teaching.”

Click here to register

Tours available at the NACTA 2024 Conference!

Several tours will be available at this year's NACTA Conference, including Behind the Scenes of CAB, Brutus' Backyard, Dairy and Forage, Mechanics and Maintenance, Nature Lovers Retreat, and more! More information on these tours can be found here.

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New NACTA Members

NACTA had 31 new members since our last newsletter. We hope you will join us in welcoming them!

Eastern
Megan Norman, PA
Delphine Iradukunda, IN
Diane Mashburn, OH

Central
Alex Stanton, KS
Dante Pizarro, WI

Western
Jessiann Dusenbery, NM

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Renew Your NACTA Membership

NACTA is the largest professional development organization that focuses specifically on the scholarship of teaching and learning in agriculture, food and natural resources. Need to renew your membership? Want to invite a colleague to join? Want to change your membership status? Visit the membership page here. We appreciate your NACTA membership!