The Agriculture Academy gives you the chance to explore careers in the agriculture, horticulture, and natural resources fields while earning college credit before you graduate from high school! This academy will give you hands-on experience with and introductory knowledge of crops/agronomy, horticulture, livestock production, and environmental conservation.
Career Opportunities
Your career opportunities may include, but are not limited to:
- Agricultural and food science technician
- Agricultural equipment operator
- Agricultural inspector
- Animal breeder
- Farm products buyer and purchasing agent
- Farmworker
- Forest and conservation technician
- Grounds maintenance worker
- Nursery and greenhouse farmworker
- Precision agriculture technician
- Supervisor of farming, fishing, forestry, landscaping, lawn service, or grounds keeping workers
- Vegetation pesticide handler, sprayer, and applicator
- Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretaker
Starting wages for these careers range from $18,300-$38,600* per year.
*Source: 2016 Iowa Wage Report, Iowa Workforce Development
Program Costs
- Your school district pays for your courses and provides the textbooks.
- You are responsible for transportation costs to the course location.
- You are responsible for any field trips and activities out of the classroom.
Who can participate?
- Any 9th–12th grade student who meets the requirements.
- Students who are able to travel to the course locations.
What can you do after you graduate from high school?
As a part of the Agriculture Academy you may receive up to 24 credits (approximately a $4,000 value) toward your college degree**.
You can continue your education at Hawkeye in programs such as:
**Some courses do not apply to all program degrees.
Where are the courses located?
Agriculture Academy courses are located at your high school and the Western Outreach Center.
Course locations may vary; contact your guidance counselor for availability.
Agriculture Academy Courses
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General education course. |
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Non-transfer general education course. |
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Course has a prerequisite and/or corequisite. |
Course Descriptions: Show All | Hide All
| Agriculture Academy Courses |
| AGA-114 |
Principles of Agronomy
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3 |
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Provides a foundation course in agronomy. Applies crop, soil, and environmental sciences in understanding agricultural systems in the world. Introduces concepts of plant, soil, tillage, pest, environmental, and sustainable aspects of crop production. It includes hands-on learning experiences.
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| AGH-221 |
Principles of Horticulture
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3 |
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The course provides an introduction to horticulture covering the basic knowledge and skills associated with growth and development of plants including fruits, vegetables, turfgrass, and ornamentals.
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| AGS-113 |
Survey of the Animal Industry
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3 |
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This course introduces students to the species and breeds of domestic livestock and development of an appreciation for the principles of livestock production, and issues facing product marketing. Topics include: breeds, basic management and marketing of farm animals, composition, evaluation and marketing of farm animals, composition, evaluation and marketing of animal products; including beef and dairy cattle, horses, goats, poultry, sheep and swine.
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| CNS-121 |
Environmental Conservation
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3 |
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Environmental Conservation is a course that enables students to learn about their environment. Students study about natural ecosystems, interactions within ecosystems, ecological principles and their application, the impact our increasing population has on the environment, the importance and components of a sustainable agriculture, and the environmental issues facing today's world.
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| ENG-105 |
Composition I
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3 |
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Composition I emphasizes fluency, thesis-driven organization, the use of supporting details, and research techniques. Writing is approached as a recursive process that includes prewriting strategies, drafting, revising, and editing. The course helps students shape writing to serve readers' needs and define a sense of purpose in their writing. It also gives students strategies for reading college-level material.
Prerequisite(s): Appropriate placement scores or equivalent.
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| MAT-772 |
Applied Math
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3 |
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This course is designed to present basic facts of arithmetic including whole numbers, fractions, decimals, powers, roots, English and metric measurement, ratio-proportion, percents, introduction to algebra, introduction to geometry, and applied statistics. Instruction includes use of scientific hand-held calculators and emphasis placed on critical thinking, problem solving skills.
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| PSY-111 |
Introduction to Psychology
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3 |
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This course provides an introduction to the study of behavior and mental processes with emphasis in such areas as learning, cognition, motivation, personality, behavioral disorder, therapy, and social influence. An understanding of the impact of both theoretical perspectives and experimental evidence on the formulation of the science of human behavior is also stressed. Psychological theories and principles are utilized to explain and predict behavior.
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| SOC-110 |
Introduction to Sociology
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3 |
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This course surveys the basic principles, concepts, and research findings of social life from small groups to societies. The course examines a range of sociological explanations for the various forms of social behaviors and establishes a basis for reflection and further study in the field.
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| SPC-101 |
Fundamentals of Oral Communication
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3 |
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This course introduces students to the oral communication process and how it affects human interaction There will be an emphasis on developing interpersonal, small group, and public speaking skills. Students will be involved in activities that provide opportunity for the understanding and improvement of their oral communication skills.
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