Agriculture in the K-12 Classroom

Overview

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) requests applications for the Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) program for fiscal year (FY) 2023 to increase agricultural literacy through K-12 education. NIFA encourages applications that engage diverse communities and have broad impacts through research, education, extension, and integrated activities to address current and future challenges.

Purpose and Priorities: 

1. Ensure that future generations are agriculturally literate; 
2. Encourage K-12 educators to integrate information about the food and agricultural system across curricula to assist students in understanding the pivotal role of agriculture in the U.S. and world economies, to introduce students to environmental and social issues impacting food, agricultural, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences and to expose them to higher education and career opportunities in the FANH sciences; and 
3. Support a network of partners to carry out the program at the State and local levels, by fostering the development of active and effective AITC programs in each of the fifty States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands of the United States, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.

AITC education applications must demonstrably incorporate a leadership development component to equip students with technical and leadership abilities upon graduation. Specific activities may include: 

1. Developing practical applications to increase understanding of leadership roles, including critical thinking, problem solving, and communication skills; ethics and professionalism; and working in teams. 
2. Connecting the academic classroom experience with daily leadership roles and organizational activities. 
3. Providing opportunities for mentoring and shadowing; and 4. Organizing leadership academies, workshops, trainings, etc.

Program Area Description: 

This cooperative agreement will provide support for the following enhancement strategies to increase national agricultural literacy through K-12 education. Applicants must demonstrate how they will implement ALL strategies listed below. 

1. Strengthen state AITC programs; 
2. Support and conduct USDA AITC recognition programs; 
3. Host and maintain an AITC website as well as maintain and strengthen the national agricultural literacy curriculum database; 
4. Conduct research and evaluation projects supportive of the program goals; 
5. Develop and strengthen curriculum and development of materials to support teacher preand in-service trainings; 
6. Outreach and collaborate with other organizations and agencies; and
7. Support of the National Center for Agricultural Literacy.

The following describes the types of projects or cooperative agreements that are eligible for funding: 

1. Project Types. Education and Outreach Project. For this program, a project must include education and outreach components within the project. Functions should be focused on the problem or issue and should be interwoven throughout the life of the project to complement and reinforce one another. The education and outreach functions should be interdependent and necessary for the success of the project. 

2. Grant Types. NIFA will issue a new AITC award (cooperative agreement) on an additional three-year continuation basis. A continuation award is an award instrument by which NIFA agrees to support a specified level of effort for a predetermined period of time with a statement of intention to provide additional support at a future date, provided that performance has been satisfactory, appropriations are available for this purpose, and continued support would be in the best interest of the federal government and the public.

Applications may only be submitted by the following eligible applicants: (a) State agricultural
experiment stations; (b) colleges and universities; (c) university research foundations; (d) other
research institutions and organizations; (e) Federal agencies; (f) national laboratories; (g) private
organizations or corporations; and, (h) individuals or any group consisting of two or more of the
entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (H).

The anticipated amount available for FY 2023 is approximately $960,000 and will support funding for the initial year. Continuation funding of similar funding levels may be awarded for an additional three years provided performance has been satisfactory. Applications should be submitted for the full four years.

In FY 2023, an eligible applicant may submit up to one application on behalf of multiple institutions’ staff as long as they are not essentially duplications of the same project or portions of the same project to multiple programs.

Grant Duration: 48 Months 
Anticipated # of Awards: Up to one