Persuasive Speech of Policy
Channel: A. Cumming
Date: 2015-07-23

Educational Mandate for Agricultural Education

I. Introduction
 A. What are you feeding your kids - do they know where it comes from?  
 B. Importance of agricultural education.  (Nebraska Agricultural Education, 2015)
 C. Main Points
  1. Why we need a mandate like this.
  2. How this mandate would satisfy the need for consumer knowledge.
  3. What we can do now to make this mandate happen.  

II. Why we need an agricultural education mandate.
 A. How many people know about agriculture.  (PRNewswire, 2011)
 B. What agricultural education integrates into schools. 
  (Nebraska Agricultural Education, 2015)
  1. Classroom instruction.
  2. Leadership instruction.
  3. Experiential learning.

III. How an agricultural education mandate would satisfy need for consumer knowledge.
 A. Misconceptions about agriculture.  (NCFB, 2010)
 B. Combating misconceptions through education. 
  1. Consumers wanting to know where their food comes from.  
   (PRNewswire, 2011)
  2. Teaching kids at a young age where their food comes from.  

IV. What we can do now to make a mandate like this happen.
 A. Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food.  (USDA, 2009)
  1. Taking part in the KYF campaign.
  2. Start an agricultural education program in your local school.
 B. Getting legislature involved.
  1. Talk to your local legislative representative. 
  2. Advocate your purpose!
 C. Contact local agricultural leaders to give presentations. 
  1. Get younger children involved in presentations. 
  2. Promote youth agriculture opportunities.  (NDA, 2015)

V. Conclusion
 A. Importance of agricultural education to the young population.
 B. Review of main points
  1. Why we need an agricultural education mandate.
  2. How the mandate will inform the consumers of the agriculture industry.
  3. What we can do to carry out the mandate. 
 C. Involve the community today!

References

Nebraska Agricultural Education.  (2015).  Preparing students for successful careers and a lifetime of informed choices.  Retrieved from http://www.neaged.org/about-agricultural-education.html
Nebraska Department of Agriculture.  (2015).  Nebraska agricultural youth institute.  Retrieved from http://www.nda.nebraska.gov/nayi/index.html
North Carolina Farm Bureau.  (2010).  15 common misconceptions about agriculture.  Retrieved  from http://ncfieldfamily.org/farm/15-common-misconceptions-about-agriculture/
PRNewswire.  (2011).  Nationwide surveys reveal disconnect between Americans and their food.  Retrieved from http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nationwide-surveys-reveal-disconnect-between-americans-and-their-food-130336143.html
United States Department of Agriculture.  (2009).  Know your farmer, know your food.  Retrieved from http://www.usda.gov/documents/KYFCompass.pdf