2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 17:185.3 — Agricultural education; advisory committee; state action plan

§185.3.  Agricultural education; advisory committee; state action plan

A.(1)  The Agricultural Education Advisory Committee, hereinafter referred to as "advisory committee", shall be established to provide recommendations for the development and implementation of the state action plan for the delivery of education in agriculture literacy, awareness, and career exploration in public schools.

(2)  The advisory committee shall be composed of the following members:

(a)  The state superintendent of education, or his designee.

(b)  The commissioner of agriculture, or his designee.

(c)  One member of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, appointed by the board president.

(d)  The commissioner of higher education, or his designee.

(e)  The president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, or his designee.

(f)  The chancellor of the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, or his designee.

(g)  The president of the Louisiana School Boards Association, or his designee.

(h)  The president of the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents, or his designee.

(i)  The president of the Louisiana Association of School Principals, or his designee.

(j)  The chairman of the Workforce Commission, or his designee.

(k) One member to serve as a representative of the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation.

(l)  An agricultural education teacher educator, appointed by the commissioner of higher education.

(m)  A local career and technical education supervisor, appointed by the superintendent of education.

(n)  A local curriculum supervisor, appointed by the superintendent of education.

(o)  Two agricultural science teachers, to be appointed by the superintendent of education from a list of five names submitted by the Louisiana Vocational Agriculture Teachers Association.

(p)  Two "Ag in the Classroom" teachers, to be appointed by the superintendent of education from a list of five names submitted by the president of the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation.

(q)  One career and technical education staff member from the state Department of Education, appointed by the state superintendent of education.

(r)  One member to serve as a representative of the Louisiana School for the Agricultural Sciences.

(s)  One adult member to serve as a representative of the Louisiana FFA Organization.

(t)  One member to serve as a representative for the coordinator of the office of environmental education.

(3)  The members shall serve without compensation.

B.  The advisory committee shall, at a minimum, provide recommendations for the following:

(1)  A plan to provide for a statewide agriculture resource center.

(2)  Funding strategies.

(3)  Coordination of the agricultural education program delivery between postsecondary education, elementary and secondary, and workforce development.

(4)  Coordination of professional development activities.

(5)  Technical assistance to city, parish, and other local public school systems.

(6)  Submission of a state action plan that falls within the parameters established in the Unified State Plan for Workforce Development and recommendations for implementation to the state Department of Education and to the Senate and House committees on education.

C.  The advisory committee may establish an instructional strategies team and appoint its members as the advisory committee deems necessary to help develop lesson plans that meet the statewide content standards, support the goals and mission of the statewide accountability system, and that can be integrated into local curriculum. The team may include but shall not be limited to teachers, curriculum directors, department staff, principals, postsecondary representatives, local business owners or their representatives, representatives of agricultural organizations, and any other member as designated by the advisory committee.

D.  The state superintendent of education shall call the first meeting of the Agricultural Education Advisory Committee no later than August 15, 2001, and a chairman shall be elected from among the membership at such meeting.

E.  The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, upon recommendation of the state Department of Education, shall approve a state action plan for a nonmandatory comprehensive agricultural education program for kindergarten through grade twelve, inclusive, in the public schools in Louisiana.  The state action plan shall include instructional strategies, guidelines, instructional materials, and professional development activities.

F.  The instructional strategies established pursuant to this Section for kindergarten through grade six may include grade-appropriate and collaborative learning experiences through investigation and inquiry, including laboratory and site-based learning activities.

G.  The instructional strategies established pursuant to this Section for grades seven through twelve may include the elements as provided in Subsection F of this Section and the following components:

(1)  Organized classes in the study of agriculture, agriscience, and agribusiness.

(2)  Supervised program of work-based learning experiences in agricultural careers that occur outside of the classroom.

(3)  Organized program of leadership, organization, and personal development at the local level.

(4)  Learning activities that are intracurricular and may contribute to the grade of the student when such activities are integral to assisting such student in achieving an objective of a class or course.  Such intracurricular activities may include those activities associated with the FFA Organization.

Acts 2001, No. 339, §1, eff. June 7, 2001.