By Chabella Guzman, PREEC communications
To meet the needs of the community and students of western Nebraska, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) and Western Nebraska Community College (WNCC) signed a 2+2 agreement, which will aid students in obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in Agricultural Education and Skilled and Technical Science Education.
“We’re very excited to have a signing ceremony that signifies the agreement between Western Nebraska Community College and UNL’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources,” said Mark Balschweid, UNL Professor and Head of the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication. “We realize there are a lot of students from this part of the state who enjoy living here and want to stay here. And we also know that there’s a shortage of teachers in high schools filling critical roles that contribute to workforce development like manufacturing and agricultural.”
The program helps students from the Panhandle of Nebraska take two years of the program at WNCC, closer to home, and then transfer to UNL for three semesters. The final semester would be student teaching, where students could return to the Panhandle.
“We (WNCC) can do a lot of the general education courses that students will need to start off and then transfer to the University of Nebraska Lincoln and get their degree to become ag teachers or shop teachers’ skills and technical sciences instructors,” said Grant Wilson, WNCC Executive Vice President of Educational and Student Services. Students will work with both institutions to complete the programs.
UNL is the only institution in the state to offer both agricultural education and skilled and technical services education. It certifies and prepares agricultural education teachers, skilled and technical sciences teachers, or industrial technology teachers, as they were previously known. The university has other agreements across Nebraska, like the one it now has with WNCC.
Students interested in the program can start signing up for next semester by contacting WNCC at https://www.wncc.edu/admissions-aid/index or by emailing advising@wncc.edu for more information.