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Rockingham educator named Virginia AITC Teacher of the Year

Chris Graham

Lauren Arbogast of Rockingham County has been named Virginia’s Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year.

After SchoolThe award recognizes a Virginia educator for efforts in incorporating agriculture into his or her core curriculum.

“Lauren really stood out to us as an excellent educator with her integration of realfarm life examples in her classroom on a daily basis,” said Tammy Maxey, AITC senior education program coordinator.

Arbogast teaches preschool at W. H. Keister Elementary School in Harrisonburg and integrates agriculture into not only her own classroom but also the entire school. She established a Farming in the City Day to increase student awareness of agriculture and has participated in several AITC professional development events.

Arbogast is a member of the Rockingham County Farm Bureau and that organization’s Women’s Committee and the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers. She and her husband, Brian, and their two sons, Brandon and Jackson, live on a multi-generational farm where they produce beef, poultry and crops. She blogs about her life on the farm at paintthetownag.com.

She will receive a scholarship to attend the 2014 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference in June in Hershey, Pa., and will be encouraged to apply for the National Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year recognition.




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Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, TikTok, BlueSky, or subscribe to his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected]. Support AFP by signing up for our newsletter and/or powering our work with a one-time or monthly contribution.

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