Presented By: Emily Griffith, Oklahoma State University
Co-Authors: Carrie Baker, University of Florida
Sarah Bush, University of Florida
Jason Headrick, Texas Tech University
 Lauren Lewis Cline, Oklahoma State University
Hoyt Nebgen, Texas Tech University

Reports by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and studies conducted with Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Human Sciences (FANH) faculty have identified employability skills important for agricultural and natural resources graduates. Many skills mentioned are also identified as leadership skills, such as identifying and solving problems, decision making, communication, conflict resolution, and navigating change. This study identified the needs of FANH faculty for integrating employability and/or leadership skill development in undergraduate courses serving FANH students. Participants were faculty members representing all college of agriculture (COA) departments at three land-grant institutions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 FANH faculty to understand their perceptions and needs related to teaching leadership skills in their curricula. Qualitative data were coded using in-vivo and pattern coding to establish themes. The five themes that emerged were: (a) we need help teaching communication skills; (b) we think a college-wide course should teach it; (c) we know student need it, but we can't teach it; (d) we aren't all willing to do this; and, (e) we don't know how to assess it. FANH faculty recognized the need to develop student leadership skills but differed significantly on who responsibility it was to ensure this occurred during a student's academic career and how to assess it. Recommendations are for COAs to explore a college-wide required course for students focused on leadership skill development. Professional development for FANH faculty in assessing leadership-related learning objectives is also recommended. Understanding the needs of FANH faculty regarding the integration of leadership skill development will aid agricultural leadership educators in developing undergraduate level curricula to address employability skill gaps among FANH graduates.