WFPFGlobalGuides: Interdisciplinary Professional Learning (3:00-3:15pm)
OP McCubbins 
Mississippi State University

Private and public partnerships have presented the unique opportunity for dynamic professional development on global food security for educators utilizing a hybrid design format involving digital preparation, digital support, and a domestic immersion experience. The World Food Prize Foundation partnered with the Mississippi State University to design this seven-month program that was delivered with the third cohort this past year. Twenty-five educators were selected from over 75 applications. Educators averaged 15 years' experience and represented diversity in context, discipline, geographic location, and ethnicity. The program involved four fundamental learning goals: (1) Describing Food Security, (2) Utilizing technology to advance project-based learning, (3) connecting to global sustainable development education frameworks, and (4) realizing the collective leadership power of a community of educators.  Four 90-minute foundational webinars were presented prior to a week-long immersion experience in Des Moines IA at the Borlaug Dialogues hosted by the World Food Prize Foundation. Following the immersion and the development of an individual reusable learning artifact (RLA) project, participants were provided opportunities in November and December for open office hours with program faculty to refine the project for Spring completion. During the spring, educators are provided monthly team webinars, tasked with being the digital leadership in a diverse digital learning community of over 1000 educators from across the world and building towards a culminating activity of a celebration of excellence sharing our status of RLA projects. Critical outcomes of this program over three years have been stated participant professional renewal and thus retention in the profession. In addition, educators have developed the capacity for interdisciplinary conversations around rallying a community or group around a specific global issue like global food security.

Influencing the Next Agriculturalists: Impacts of Study Abroad Experiences in Ag Ed Classrooms (3:30-3:45pm)
Joy Morgan
North Carolina State University

Educators seek to prepare workers with critical skills that allow them to work in multicultural environments and within a global agricultural system. The purpose of this study was to examine the connection between agricultural educators who participated in undergraduate study abroad experience and their motivations to include their study abroad experiences in their teaching instruction. The research questions were:  How did your participation in the study abroad experience impact your incorporation of global and international concepts into the curriculum? How did your participation in the study abroad experience impact your interactions with students from various cultures? A narrative qualitative approach was used with participants being selected based on their participation in a study abroad experience in high school or college and who are now agricultural educators. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview protocol until data saturation was reached. Interviews lasted approximately an hour with eighteen open-ended questions guiding the interview. Following the transcription of interviews, member checking was utilized to ensure that the interviews were accurately captured.    Rural, urban, and suburban middle and high school agriculture programs were represented with agriculture teachers who had more than two years of teaching experience. Study abroad experiences included Costa Rica, Scotland, Ireland, New Zealand, England, Spain, Chile, Czech Republic, Prague, Paris, and Finland. Six themes emerged from this study including the power of storytelling, broadened perspectives, the influence of people, 21st-century skills, reflection and application, and the universal language of food and agriculture.

Impact of Study Abroad: A Case Study (3:45-4:00pm)
Lucia Ona
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

Study abroad programs provide an opportunity for students to experience the world as their classroom. Evidence shows that increased access of students to study abroad has several benefits, including improved retention, a higher degree of educational attainment, increased foreign language skills, enhanced global perspectives, and the adoption of new areas of interest and career objectives. This research study investigates the impact of study abroad on participants' learning experiences, retention, educational achievement, attitudes, and behavior toward diversity. We focus on the experiences of a group of undergraduate students from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC), a four-year college located in South Georgia. This qualitative study uses primary data collected using focus groups and a survey of 112 students who participated in study abroad programs from 2014 to 2019. This study fills a gap in the literature by focusing on the impact of study abroad programs in small rural colleges.  Preliminary results show that studying abroad led to improved academic performance and helped develop leadership skills. Furthermore, 60% of participants indicated that studying abroad increased their desire to finish their degree. All participants reported an inspiration to learn another language, an increased level of comfort with people different from them, and an increased ability to interact effectively with people from different backgrounds. In conclusion, this study suggests that study abroad programs provide rewarding experiences for participants and should be encouraged for every college student.