Abstract
Since its introduction into agricultural education programs in the 1970s, agricultural leadership has continued to change due to the needs of students and trends within the field (Cletzer et al., 2020; Jones, 2004; Williams, 2007). A single research question guided the study: What is the nature of graduate agricultural leadership courses offered in the United States? This study utilized a qualitative content analysis to capture the meanings, emphasis, and themes of agricultural leadership graduate course descriptions. The frame for this research was established by consulting the American Association of Agricultural Educators member list. University course catalogs were reviewed, and all graduate coursework offered by the agricultural education departments of the identified institutions that included any of the following terms in the title were noted: (a) lead, (b) leader, and (c) leadership. A total of 62 courses from 11 institutions met the criteria. The findings clustered the courses into 21 categories, further compiled into six themes: (1) individual-level focus, (2) organizational-level focus, (3) societal-level focus, (4) professional focus, (5) methodological focus, (6) developmental focus. The findings and recommendations should be considered by agricultural leadership educators as they evaluate how to most appropriately grow their academic programs and coursework.
Highlights
Introduction and Problem StatementLeadership education provides students with the skills to effectively engage with organizations, establish meaningful dialogs, increase their ability to fulfill leadership roles, and expand their capacity for thoughts and ideas (Huestedde & Woodward, 1996; McCauley, et al, 1998; Day, 2000)
The current study provides insight into graduate level agricultural leadership coursework in the United States and explores how the coursework fulfills the needs of the agricultural industry
The population frame was established by consulting the American Association of Agricultural Educators (AAAE) member list and determining who self-identified as offering a masters or doctoral degree or graduate level specialization in agricultural leadership
Summary
Introduction and Problem StatementLeadership education provides students with the skills to effectively engage with organizations, establish meaningful dialogs, increase their ability to fulfill leadership roles, and expand their capacity for thoughts and ideas (Huestedde & Woodward, 1996; McCauley, et al, 1998; Day, 2000). The field of agriculture is no exception to these benefits (Weeks et al, 2020) Those working in this context continually face complex problems such as climate change, droughts, flooding, and water scarcity, requiring strong leadership (Jordan et al, 2013). Since its introduction into agricultural education programs in the 1970s, agricultural leadership has continued to change to meet the needs of students and industry (Cletzer et al, 2020; Jones, 2004; Williams, 2007). As agricultural leadership graduate programs further develop, research is critical to better understand both the current state of the field and changes needed to improve the educational outcomes of programs. The current study provides insight into graduate level agricultural leadership coursework in the United States and explores how the coursework fulfills the needs of the agricultural industry
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