New Mexico State University's School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management, has partnered with Arrowhead Center's Innoventure Program to establish an online professional development program, intended to provide specialized training in agricultural sciences and sustainability to high school culinary and hospitality teachers according to an Aug. 1 news release by NMSU.
“The objective is to bring more knowledge of agriculture and sustainability into high school classrooms,” HRTM school director Jean Hertzman said in the release. “Essentially, we’re training the trainers – high school teachers – so their students can learn about these concepts and carry them into their future educational and professional endeavors.”
The project is funded by a $500,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture and aims to enhance participants' understanding of agricultural systems and sustainability through five courses and an immersive in-person summer workshop according to the release.
The project intends to equip teachers with the skills necessary to integrate food and agricultural science concepts into their classes, while exploring career paths in the field and fostering mentorships with industry professionals, business leaders, and faculty at four-year higher education institutions. The program will be divided into three cohorts, each consisting of 20 teachers. Led by HRTM Director Jean Hertzman, the initial group will primarily comprise educators from New Mexico and El Paso. As the program progresses, recruitment efforts will extend to educators beyond the state and region. the school reported..
“The ultimate goal is to train the next generation of culinarians and hospitality managers with the skills needed to ensure the effective and socially responsible use of resources from the producer to the end-user and consumers,” Hertzman said in the release.
“There’s growing national and global discussion and awareness about the changes in agriculture and the relationship between agriculture and sustainability,” Hertzman added. “This program will provide educators with the resources to understand these issues and incorporate them into their classrooms.”