By Avery Davidson, Louisiana Farm Bureau News

2022 Louisiana Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year Haley Broussard stands in the school garden at Dozier Elementary in Erath, Louisiana.

2022 Louisiana Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year Haley Broussard will receive more recognition for teaching students about the sources of food, fiber and fuel. The National Agriculture in the Classroom Organization, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, and Farm Credit selected Broussard to receive a 2023 National Excellence in Teaching About Agriculture Award.

Broussard teaches second grade at Dozier Elementary in Erath, Louisiana. She gives her students real world experiences by having them make products from what they’ve grown in the school garden, determine the price at which the students should sell the product in order to make a profit and decide how they should market the product to entice others to buy it. Broussard teaches economics, food, health, technology and engineering by working agriculture into daily lessons.

Broussard is the daughter of a sugarcane farmer and says she took for granted that everyone knew the importance of agriculture.

“It wasn't until I started teaching that I realized that people don't really know where their food comes from,” Broussard said. “They see that tractor in the field, but they don't really know what it's doing. Or they see that loaded down cane truck going to the mill, but it's a bother to them. It's an inconvenience because it's in their way. But they don't really understand what they're doing. They're providing food for you."

Broussard will receive the award at the 2023 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference taking place June 26-29 in Orlando, Florida.

“We’re so proud of Haley and the work she does to ensure students at her school know the importance of agriculture,” said Louisiana Ag in the Classroom Coordinator Lynda Danos. “As a former teacher, it’s a joy to me when I see teachers, like Haley, who use hands-on activities involving agriculture to get students to grasp concepts essential to their learning.”

The Louisiana Agriculture in the Classroom Program provides educators with lesson plans and activities that use agriculture to teach math, science, language arts, social studies and health.

Learn more at www.aitcla.org.