SHORT SUPPLY OF AG TEACHERS

The supply of qualified agriculture teachers has fallen short of the demand, according to data collected in a national survey.

In 1990, U.S. schools had 628 openings for new ag teachers, but fewer than 400 new graduates were looking for jobs, said James W. Legacy, professor of agricultural education at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. The survey was done by Dale Oliver of the Division of Vocational and Technical Education at Virginia Tech.

According to the survey, 625 ag graduates won certification last year, almost enough to handle demands. But only 331 of them actually became teachers. The rest took jobs in other areas of agriculture.

"A degree in agriculture education is very diverse, and therefore quite attractive to employers," said Legacy. He said teaching agriculture has become less attractive to graduates over the last few years. Although school agriculture programs have plummeted over the last 20 years, there are exactly the same number of teachers now as there were in 1964 10,300.

An SIU-C sponsored survey showed that for the first time in six years, the number of high school agriculture students increased at a rate of 13 percent. "This is excellent news for those interested in the field of teaching," Legacy said.

The bottom line, said Legacy, is that "there are excellent opportunities for graduates interested in entering the world of ag education with virtually a 100 percent placement rate in the job market."