Switzerland County High School agriculture teacher Greg Curlin has been elected as the Region 4 vice president of the National Association of Agriculture Educators. The honor came at the organization’s national convention, which was held November 27th through December 3rd in Atlanta, Georgia.
Greg Curlin is one of six regional vice presidents, and his region is the largest in the country; representing all agriculture programs in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Illinois, and Missouri. Each of the six vice presidents was elected to a three-year term.
The vice presidents will serve under a president-elect and a national president, and will have various duties that involve the promotion of agriculture education across the country at all levels.
The convention was attended by more than 1,000 agriculture educators, ranging from middle school teachers through college professors. Other vocational organizations also held their annual conferences in conjunction with the agriculture educators.
Representing Region 4, which encompasses 1,129 members, Greg Curlin will travel throughout the region and the country promoting agriculture education and education in general. He will also be lobbying Congress to find ways to explore new funding possibilities for educational programs.
“Our board will be meeting each quarter to review standing committees and make various recommendations,” Greg Curlin said. “There are a lot of opportunities in agriculture that I don’t think we realize are there. We need to explore those and others.”
In his new post, Greg Curlin will:
– Attend the National Teacher In-Service for Agriculture Education Conference in Indianapolis in February. That organization reviews curriculum development for agriculture programs.
– Attend a policy seminar in March that will train him and the other members of the board on working with congressmen and senators and other national policy makers.
– In June, Greg Curlin will lead and oversee the Region 4 Agriculture Educators Conference, which is rotated through the region each year, and in 2007 it will be held in Detroit, Michigan, with a theme of the urbanization of agriculture.
– In July, he will attend a legislative session in Washington, D.C.
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Greg Curlin rose through the ranks of the national organization by first serving as the president of the Indiana Association of Agriculture Educators in 1999-2000.
“That’s when I first got introduced to the national level,” Greg Curlin said. “I served as the national by-laws chairman for two years.”
Following his two years as the committee chairman, Greg Curlin was then elected as the Region 4 Secretary, serving in that capacity for three years under region vice president Harold Eckler of Missouri – who is now the President-Elect of the national organization.
“I enjoyed working with him during my time as secretary, and I’m looking forward to continuing to work with him now that he’s going to be the president,” Greg Curlin said.
He is just the second teacher from Indiana ever to hold this office.
Greg Curlin had to run for the office of vice president at the convention, with the 38 official delegates from Region 4 considering his resume and also evaluating a speech that he was asked to give. After his speech, his opponent from Missouri withdrew from the race, leaving Greg Curlin as the clear choice. The region’s vote was then officially approved by the entire convention.
With a lot of new responsibilities, Greg Curlin also feels like this new position will also be a positive thing for the agriculture department here at Switzerland County High School.
“I’m looking forward to attending workshops in different states,” he said. “The information that I get from other programs I can bring back here to improve our program. It’s going to give us many new perspectives on how we continue to develop our program here.”
He also believes that his work with legislators on both a state and national level will bring benefits to educational programs not only across the country, but also here locally.
What’s next?
Greg Curlin said that during his interview for the vice president post, he was asked what his goals were.
“I told them that after finishing my three year term as vice president, I would like to run for the organization’s presidency,” Greg Curlin said. “It’s kind of overwhelming to think about, really.”
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Greg Curlin is a Switzerland County native, having graduated from Switzerland County High School in 1984. After serving a year as FFA State Treasurer, he entered Purdue University, earning his degree in 1990.
From there he returned home, beginning his career as the agriculture teacher at Switzerland County High School in the fall of 1990. He has also been very active in the community, serving on the fair board; and he is currently on the board of trustees at Aberdeen United Methodist Church. He is also involved in a new committee that will look at agriculture economic development here in Switzerland County.
In June of this year, he was selected as one of six outstanding agriculture educators from the region to attend a program in Switzerland. He was named as the Outstanding Agriculture Educator in Indiana for last year, which led to him being selected to go to Switzerland.
He and his wife, Becky, and sons Ethan and Levi live on Tapps Ridge Road near Vevay.