Now Accepting Applications: 2025-2026 Grants for Ag Education Programs
Rockingham Cooperative is proud to announce the 2025 Agriculture Production Education Grant program, reaffirming our commitment to cultivating the next generation of agricultural leaders. This initiative provides essential funding for capital improvement projects in land labs, enhancing hands-on learning experiences for students in agricultural education programs.
Investing in Agricultural Education
The Agriculture Production Education Grant program is designed to support middle and high school agricultural education programs within a 100-mile radius of any Rockingham Cooperative retail or service location. Priority is given to programs that offer hands-on production courses at school-operated land labs. Funding must be used for capital improvement projects that will have a lasting impact on the program's ability to attract and educate students.
Real Impact in Our Communities
The impact of these grants is already being felt in our communities. Hannah Campbell, Agriculture Educator and FFA Advisor at Turner Ashby High School, whose program received funds in the 2024-2025 school year to build a shed and pen space to raise livestock on school facilities, shares:
“I think the largest benefit of receiving funding for this project is now having the opportunity to provide students with direct access to hands-on learning experiences in not only the Animal Systems pathways, but the Farm to Table course here, as well as the Ag Structures program. having land lab facilities with a variety of livestock species will help prepare and motivate students for careers in not just Animal Systems, but in agriculture as a whole. Students will experience first-hand the effects that managing livestock has on their personal and professional lives which includes various core personal and leadership skills.”
Similarly, Dakota Stroud, Agriculture Educator and FFA Advisor at Signal Knob Middle School, whose program received funding in the previous cycle to expand their outdoor forestry classroom, notes:
“This enhances our land lab by teaching our students to be good stewards of the environment through conservation and natural resource management. These new resources will allow for us to work more efficiently when preparing for contests, while also allowing for us to integrate the same resources into the curriculum within the agriscience courses.”
Apply by July 18, 2025
Eligible agriculture education programs seeking grant support for land lab facilities within Rockingham Cooperative’s service area are encouraged to apply by July 18, 2025. Applications for grant funding are expected to open once per year.
For more information and to apply, please visit our Ag Production Grant Program page.
Together, let's sow the seeds of knowledge and cultivate a thriving future for agriculture.
