1. Enhance the quality of postsecondary instruction within the food, agricultural, and natural resources and human (FANH) sciences.
Coordinating our two-year degree programs with regional four-year programs has been a major focus during the term of the OiA grant. We have worked with representatives from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Texas State University, and Texas Tech University in particular to make sure that our offerings align well with their programs. Our department chair has also participated in state-wide committees working towards program articulation, including the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Agriculture Business & Management Field of Study Advisory Committee and the Texas Agricultural Community College Committee. Within our department at ACC, we have instituted a Continuing Education-to-Credit conversion pathway and tweaked our course offerings in reaction to the real-world needs of our students. We have also been able to bring on two full-time and three adjunct faculty members to provide a well-rounded instructional staff. Finally, our agricultural facilities and student farm have proven to be an invaluable resource in supporting the quality of our coursework.

2. Develop a minimum of fourteen (14) credit courses in Agriculture and Horticulture to be offered as part of ACC’s Agriculture A.A.S. and A.S. program.
With input from our Agriculture Industry Advisory Board and the ACC Curriculum Development office, we have created the following fourteen credit courses to support our two new agricultural degree programs:
AGCR 1341 Forage and Pasture Management
AGCR 1371 Introduction to Sustainable Agriculture
AGCR 1393 Special Topics in Plant Protection – IPM
AGCR 2313 Soil and Water Conservation Management
AGCR 2418 Soil Science
AGME 1315 Farm and Ranch Shop Skills I
AGMG 1311 Introduction to Agribusiness
AGMG 2386 Internship – Agricultural Business and Management
AGRI 1307 Agronomy
AGRI 1325 Marketing of Agricultural Products
AGRI 1415 Horticulture
AGRI 1419 Introductory Animal Science
AGRI 2317 Introduction to Agricultural Economics
HALT 2421 Small Farming

Course syllabi from regional four-year institutions were referenced in the development of these classes to ensure conformity in instructional content for students pursing the A.S. transfer degree.

3. Develop one Associate and Applied Science 60 hour degree program in Sustainable Agriculture and one Associate of Science 60 hour degree program in Agriculture.
Both degree programs have been successfully created and accredited; following are the general award plans for each degree:

A.A.S in Sustainable Agriculture (60 Credit Hours Total)

Semester I
EDUC 1300 Learning Framework: Effective Strategies for College Success
MATH 1332 Contemporary Mathematics
ENVR 1301 Introduction to Environmental Science
AGRI 1415 Horticulture
AGCR 1371 Introduction to Sustainable Agriculture

Semester II
ENGL 1301 English Composition I
AGRI 1419 Introductory Animal Science
AGMG 1311 Introduction to Agribusiness
AGCR 1341 Forage and Pasture Management
AGCR 2313 Soil and Water Conservation Management

Semester III
HIST 1301 United States History I
AGRI 1325 Marketing of Agricultural Products
AGCR 2418 Soil Science
AGCR 1393 Special Topics in Plant Protection – Integrated Pest Management

Semester IV
PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy
HALT 2421 Small Farming
AGME 1315 Farm and Ranch Shop Skills I
AGMG 2586 Internship – Agricultural Business and Management, General

A.S. in Agricultural Science (60-61 Credit Hours Total)

Semester I
EDUC 1300 Learning Framework: Effective Strategies for College Success
MATH 1314 College Algebra
ENVR 1301 Introduction to Environmental Science OR
BIOL 1411 General Botany
ENGL 1301 English Composition I
AGRI 14154 Horticulture

Semester II
ENGL 1302 English Composition II
SPCH 1315 Public Speaking
AGRI 1307 Agronomy OR
AGRI 1107 Agronomy (Lab)
AGRI 1419 Introductory Animal Science
ECON 2302 Principles of Microeconomics

Semester III
AGRI 1325 Marketing of Agricultural Products
HIST 1301 United States History I
CHEM 1311 General Chemistry I Lecture
CHEM 1111 General Chemistry I Lab
GOVT 2305 United States Government

Semester IV
PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy
HIST 1302 United States History II
GOVT 2306 Texas State and Local Government
ARTS 1301 Art Appreciation
AGRI 2317 Introduction to Agricultural Economics

To date, we have graduated eight students from our degree programs, two of which received scholarship funding.

4. Provide opportunities and access to FANH careers in the public and private sector.
We instituted a “Harvest Festival” event, including a farmer’s market with local producers and career education presentations, to foster relationships between students and local and governmental employers. Restrictions related to the COVID pandemic forced a pause on this event, but we have recently started to hold in-person gatherings of a similar nature to continue these relationships. Our department chair has also established connections with local agricultural-related businesses and government entities through the ACC Agriculture Industry Advisory Board and in one-on-one meetings with local producers, resulting in internship opportunities for our students.

5. Attract and support undergraduate students from underrepresented groups to prepare them for careers related to the food, agricultural, and natural resources and human (FAHN) sciences of the United States.
Over the course of our OiA grant, we were able to provide fourteen students with $44,000 in scholarship funds and two students participated in our stipend program. We also have a robust website in place that provides information on our programs, funding opportunities, job and internship openings, and more. Pre-COVID, we tabled numerous College and Career events to promote awareness of our degree offerings and have also spread the word through communications with dual-credit students on our home campus and social media posts. We have seen an explosion in the number of students enrolled in our courses, going from an unduplicated enrollment figure of six students in Fall 2019 (our first semester of offering classes) to 55 students in Spring 2022.

6. Align the efforts of HSIs and other non-profit organizations in support of the academic development and career attainment of underrepresented groups.
The “Learning Framework: Effective Strategies for College Success” course is required in the first semester of both our award programs especially to meet the needs of first-generation college students. Our department also worked closely with other HSIs in our region (Texas State University and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley) and local non-profit organizations (Austin’s Sustainable Food Center and the Texas Center for Local Food in Elgin) to make sure our programs were relevant for students from underrepresented groups.

Both our Farm and Ranch Shop Skills and Small Farming courses provide students with hand-on training in the agricultural field, imparting skills that are of use in real world situations. Internships with entities such as Middle Ground Farm, the ACC Sustainable Student Farm, and VERDNT Farm also give students a chance to hone their agricultural skill set. Additionally, several local farmers have come in to share their expertise with students in the Small Farming class.

A primary means of communication with the community prior to COVID was through working the aforementioned College and Career events at local high schools, concentrating on those with large Hispanic populations. We also tabled at various events such as the SXSW Music Festival, ACC’s Applied Tech Open House, and the more generally targeted ACC Fest. As the pandemic has subsided we have been increasing our in-person attendance at similar events to spread the word about our awards. Also, we worked closely with the ACC Hispanic Outreach Projects department to broadcast through their channels, including airtime on the local Telemundo affiliate. Our website continues to be a primary means of communication to the local community as well.