#418 – Ag Education and CTE, with Eric Sawatzke

In this episode of Unpacking Education, we dive into the powerful world of agricultural education and career and technical education (CTE), with award-winning ag teacher Eric Sawatzke. Eric shares how hands-on learning and real-world applications—like hydroponic farming, meat processing labs, and FFA leadership—are transforming student engagement and preparing learners for meaningful careers.

This episode is packed with inspiring stories and practical tips about a wide range of topics, from rural classrooms to national grants. Whether you’re new to CTE or looking to expand your school’s opportunities, Eric’s insights offer a compelling look at how education can open doors and build pathways to success beyond the traditional college track.

I love promoting a profession that connects with students in the most relevant way possible.

Eric Sawatzke, in his bio for Minnesota Teach Ag

Resources

The following resources are available from AVID and on AVID Open Access to explore related topics in more depth:

• The Value of Electives, Extracurriculars, and CTE, with Monique Sabby (podcast episode)
• Supporting Innovation, Opportunity, and Access in Learning, with Julie Faryniarz and Trish Rohr (podcast episode)
• What Does It Mean to Live a Life Full of Possibility? A Conversation with AVID CEO Thuan Nguyen (podcast episode)
• Invite Virtual Guest Speakers to Engage and Inspire Students (article)
• Amplifying Excellence in Career Education and Development, with Ben Solomon (podcast episode)
• Personal and Authentic Learning, with Thomas C. Murray (podcast episode)

Opening Doors, Finding Opportunities

Eric’s work centers around creating authentic, hands-on learning experiences that do more than teach technical skills—they give students real opportunities to explore careers, serve their communities, and discover passions that they didn’t even know they had. As Eric says, “What if they got excited about it and got into a career path they never thought they would?”

The episode highlights how CTE can empower students who may feel disconnected from traditional academic pathways. With powerful examples—like a mobile meat lab, a student-run hydroponic greenhouse, and community food partnerships—Eric shows how opening just one door can lead to unexpected and fulfilling futures. It’s a call for educators to think differently about college and career readiness and really consider the possibilities that unfold when students are given space to try something new. The following are a few highlights from this episode.

• About Our Guest: Eric Sawatzke is an agriculture teacher at West Central Area Schools in Minnesota. Eric has a master’s degree in Agriculture Education and has won several large grants to support ag programs in his school and classroom.
• A Connection to the Farm: Eric grew up on a family farm near Waverly, Minnesota. Because of the farm crisis in the 1980s, his family had to sell their farm, but Eric never lost his connection to that way of life. An ag class in ninth grade introduced him to FFA, and at that point, he realized he could be an ag teacher. He recalls, “I got really excited really early on. It was something that just kind of clicked right out of the gate.” He adds, “Every day, I wake up, I’m excited, and it’s been that way for going on 20 years now.”
• Increased Demand for Vocational Careers: For many years, the baby boomer generation held the majority of technical and vocational career positions, pushing most students to a four-year college instead. However, as baby boomers are retiring and leaving the workforce in large numbers, the demand for workers in technical and vocational careers has exploded. Eric says, “Now, we’re on a major upheaval of trying to figure out how to fill that void. . . . The demand is unbelievable. . . . It doesn’t matter if it’s agriculture, doesn’t matter if it’s trade and industry, family consumer sciences, healthcare fields, we have incredible demand right now.”
• Broad Exposure: Just as schools try to introduce music to all students, Eric feels like it’s equally important to expose students to the field of agriculture. Not only will this exposure help them better understand what career opportunities are available, but it will also help them understand connections and contexts if they work in another career field. Eric explains that even if students don’t pursue a career in agriculture, “You are still going to be a consumer. I don’t see why everybody wouldn’t at least get a little bit of a taste of ag education to understand all of that.”
• Ag Classes: Eric says that the types of ag courses offered by schools differ regionally, with schools offering classes that are relevant to their students and the unique needs of their geographical area. Where a New York school offers a course in reptile and amphibian healthcare, his rural Minnesota school focuses more on cattle, pigs, and horses. Other schools may focus on landscaping and floral design, wildlife, small engine, or environmental management.
• Hands-on Learning: Eric says, “I would say 85% to 90% of our coursework is hands-on.” Students engage firsthand in the work they are learning. Eric provides an example, saying, “We have a class greenhouse, and we might have some hydroponic systems where that student has to adapt and learn the ratios of hydroponic fertilizer and actually make it work properly so that we get a good product out of that system.”
• Giving Back: All of the food that Eric’s students grow in their greenhouse is donated to the local food shelf. That can include up to 70 heads of lettuce each week. He says, “We get to see it go directly to the best possible beneficiary in our community.”
• Global Guides: Eric was one of 25 educators worldwide to be selected to participate in the Global Teach Ag Network Global Guides program focusing on food security. Through this program, Eric says, “We get the opportunity to work on food security within education. So, how do we take what we do in our classroom and make it a bigger deal in our community and in our classroom?” He recounts, “They knew that I was working on a project where our local Lions Club was involved in a Lions International grant to reduce local hunger.”
• USDA Grant: Eric was awarded a $378,000 grant from the USDA to purchase a mobile meat processing lab for his students. The project was inspired by the challenges presented by COVID where meat processing facilities were often short-staffed or closed due to the pandemic. After brainstorming with local community members, Eric says, “The conversation went to meat pretty quickly.” They suggested finding ways to teach students how to process meat. They won the grant, and Eric says, “I can tell you, we’ve done it for two years now, and it is the thing that is keeping some of these kids going to school every day. That is the most exciting period of the day. Again, we are hands-on. It is not paper/pencil tests. . . . You’re literally working with the cuts of meat.”
• Authentic, Interdisciplinary Approach: The ag projects that Eric promotes also intersect with other academic departments in the school. For instance, business students do the marketing and selling for the ag products that Eric’s students produce. Eric adds, “Kids are going to know the real deal. This isn’t a made-up lab.”
• Expanding Impact: “We’ve blown this thing up across the whole state,” says Eric. “Over 20 schools have picked this up in the last two years. The legislature has set aside two different grants. We’ve given away over $500,000 to other schools through legislative funds. . . . Our kids even got to testify in front of the Senate three times in the last year, telling the story, so we can get more funding out there. It is fun, and it’s spreading nationwide. We are seeing tons of schools across the nation talking about this and getting things started.” He adds, “This is a new wave, a new era. We’re really excited about it.”
• FFA: The National FFA Organization began in 1928 as Future Farmers of America. In the 1980s, it was rebranded to FFA to reach a broader audience. Eric explains, “We are a student organization within career and tech ed.” It’s run by the students who are involved. “They develop the goals. They set the schedules. They do the budgeting for the program.”
• Resources: Many CTE programs fund portions of their program by accessing Perkins grants, which have been established through federal legislation. Other funding might come from school budgets, fundraising, and partnerships. Eric says, “My ag budget out of my high school is currently $2,800, and I just told you, we run about $30,000 through our FFA program. We kind of pay for ourselves instead of worrying about using the local taxpayers’ base funding because we couldn’t do any of what we do with that kind of a budget.” Additional grants and local donations are other funding sources.
• An Extra Prep Period: When Eric was hired, he explained his goals for the ag program. To his surprise, his principal offered him a second prep period each day, so he could achieve his lofty goals. The principal told him, “What you’re asking or expecting out of your program is going to take more of your time than you’re thinking, and you deserve time during the school day to do it.” Eric says, “I’ve had that [extra prep] for eight years, or nine years now. It has been everything. Every dime we’ve pulled in has come during that extra prep time because I can make phone calls to businesses that are open during the school day, that aren’t open at seven o’clock at night.”
• Consider a Vocational Career: Eric emphasizes that not all students need to, or probably should, go to a 4-year college. He says, “There’s a lot of good hands-on jobs that can bring you a lot of excitement.” Many of these jobs pay well and don’t require large college debt.