AITC News

More than 500 urban high school students and their educators are set to descend on the Rialto Theatre in Montreal where Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) and the Centre de développement pour l’exercice de la citoyenneté (CDEC) will showcase a world of agriculture and food careers at the first ever engAGe event!

Read the full media release here.

Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) and our provincial member organizations are looking forward to celebrating careers in agriculture and food by launching a new inspiring and motivating event!

engAGe will bring over 1500 high school students and their educators together for high energy and motivating one-day career events that will immerse them in a world of agri-food career options!

During the pilot year, engAGe events will take place in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The events will be held in partnership with our AITC provincial member organizations, including British Columbia Agriculture in the Classroom Foundation and AgScape in Ontario, as well as a partner organization in Quebec; le Centre de développement pour l'exercice de la citoyenneté.

Read the media release here.

Check out the engAGe page here.

(Winnipeg, Manitoba – May 15, 2019) Agriculture in the Classroom Canada’s (AITC-C) team grew by one this month with the addition of their new Education Specialist, Melissa Galay. Melissa, who is no stranger to the AITC family, was born and raised in Minnedosa, Manitoba and grew up with an understanding of agriculture and the importance of sharing that knowledge with others. She worked both as a summer student with AITC Manitoba and a Program Assistant for AITC-C before completing her education degree in Saskatchewan. Prior to starting her secondment with AITC-C in May 2019, Melissa was working as an agriculture educator with the Sun West School Division, developing and teaching online courses to accompany locally developed curriculum at the Sun West Distance Learning Centre.

Read the full media release here.

(Winnipeg, Manitoba – April 24, 2019) In March 2019, Agriculture for Life was named as Agriculture in the Classroom Canada’s (AITC-C) newest provincial member, with CEO Luree Williamson joining AITC-C as Director. AITC-C represents nine dedicated provincial member organizations that deliver agriculture education to classrooms in their home provinces, those organizations also offer a representative who sits on AITC-C’s Board of Directors.

Agriculture for Life is an Alberta-based charitable organization dedicated to developing a stronger understanding and appreciation of agriculture and helping people to recognize its fundamental connection to life.

Read the full media release here (English PDF)

(Ottawa, Ontario) On April 8, 2019, Agriculture in the Classroom-Canada (AITC-C) will welcome Kim Sabourin as its new Communications Manager, based in Ottawa.

Kim Sabourin, born in Calgary, Alberta and raised just west of Ottawa, has primarily worked in the not-for-profit sector in communication and community relations’ roles. Kim has worked in the field of International Education and is currently the Manager of Communications and Member Engagement with the Canadian Seed Trade Association (CSTA). CSTA is where Kim got her start in agriculture and where she truly developed her passion for food and advocating for agriculture. Through engaging with CSTA members, partners and stakeholders Kim developed an understanding of the industry and an appreciation for the critical work being done. While at CSTA, Kim has had the opportunity to manage their brand refresh, develop a new website for the Association, reimagine many communication tools and more. While it will be difficult for her to leave CSTA, Kim is very excited about the opportunity to join AITC-C.

Read the full media release here (PDF).

Annual Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month 2019 will reach over 40,000 students!

Headingley, MB, March 1, 2019 – Agriculture in the Classroom - Canada (AITC-C), representing nine provincial Agriculture in the Classroom organizations, will participate in the eighth annual Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month (CALM) in schools across Canada for the month of March.

CALM is a hands-on program that encourages children to learn about and celebrate Canada’s agriculture and food story in various ways, including reading books about farming and food, watching videos and meeting with farmers and others in the agriculture industry. Building an awareness for students about the connection they have to local farmers and the agriculture and food sector is what makes CALM so impactful.

Click for the full media release in English or French.

This exciting new online tool will be a “one-stop-shop” for teachers across Canada who are looking for agriculture education resources that will connect directly to their provincial curricula.  Teachers will be able to filter by grade, topic, and subject area to find the agriculture and food resources available to them to engage their students.  This matrix has been designed to provide teachers with the most accurate, balanced and current information regarding Canada’s agri-food sector, and it is free of charge for users. 

Download the Media Release (PDF)

Executive Director, Johanne Ross, talks new website, new resources, and all things AITC-C with realagriculture.

Check out the full interview and podcast here!

In 2017-2018 Agriculture in the Classroom Canada reached over 470, 814 students! Learn more aout our Impact here!

Impact Sheet PDF

Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month (CALM) was a great success in March 2018. Nine provinces (NL, NS, NB, PE, ON, MB, SK, AB & BC) participated with activities ranging from classroom reading visits with industry and producer representatives, high school sessions, library visits, class visits to farms, as well as a large social media component. Once again, this year the CALM coordinator allowed for the provincial coordinators to have a central hub for communication and sharing ideas. It also allowed for one person to manage national tasks including the development and distribution of teacher and volunteer resources and managing the social and traditional media communications. 

Agriculture in the Classroom Canada thanks Farm Credit Canada for its ongoing support to this impactful initiative.

View the Final Report for Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month (PDF)