Purdue Extension-Howard County is pleased to announce that Corteva Agriscience has generously donated $5,000 towards Howard County Ag Day and the Chicken Embryology program in local schools as a part of their company’s sponsorship program.
Howard County Ag Day is an educational program for fifth graders in Howard County, which aims to answer the question of “Where Does Your Pizza Come From?” through various stations teaching how agriculture is crucial to each component of a pizza including crust, sauce, cheese, vegetable, and meat toppings. In 2023, Purdue Extension worked with schools and partners such as Farm Bureau to serve over 400 students, and these funds will provide new and additional equipment for stations such as grinding wheat and pureeing tomatoes, as well as support supply needs.
Mathias Ingle, Ag and Natural Resources Educator, shares that the grant money for Chicken Embryology will be used to update equipment and expand the program. The funds will first replenish supplies and equipment that have aged due to many years of classroom use, and secondly, expand the program with new and more equipment to add new classes, increasing the reach of the highly successful program. In 2023, the Chicken Embryology program reached over 900 students in grades K-12 in Howard County. The program has been so successful that teachers outside Howard County have expressed interest in offering the program in their classes. Still, a lack of resources has made it difficult to accommodate.