White-Reinhardt Ag Scholarship Application Guidelines

The White-Reinhardt Fund for Education is a special project of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture® (AFBFA) in collaboration with the American Farm Bureau® Women’s Leadership Committee. It was established to honor two former chairs of that committee, Berta White and Linda Reinhardt, who were leaders in the national effort to improve agricultural literacy.

Purpose

The purpose of the National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference Scholarship Program is to provide travel expense funds to educators employed by a school system or to active ag literacy volunteers to attend the national conference. From attending this conference the educator or volunteer will be able to use the information gained to expand their outreach to students regarding food, fiber, shelter and renewable fuels.

Eligibility

Educators employed by a school system and working in grades K-12 who have demonstrated involvement in agricultural literacy programs are eligible to apply for the scholarship. OR Active volunteer educators who have demonstrated involvement in agricultural literacy programs through formal classroom and informal learning settings.

Application Guidelines

Recommendations by state Farm Bureaus are required. The Foundation will submit applications to Farm Bureaus for recommendations.

• Recommendations for scholarship applicants are due November 1.
• All applicants will receive notification of the results in early March.
• Recipients will receive reimbursement of expenses for the conference not covered by any other funding source. NEW for the 2023 conference, the scholarship will be for registration fees plus an additional $1,500 for expenses. Expense items include hotel, meals not included in the conference package, transportation expenses (mileage or air fare, whichever is less), and parking.
• In order to be reimbursed, the recipient must submit an expense form with receipts, a one- or two-page report to include what the educator learned, how he/she plans to use the information in the classroom, how he/she intends to share the information with other educators, and a projection of how many students would be reached with the information in the next school year.

Selection Criteria

A committee composed of agricultural literacy stakeholders with a working knowledge of agriculture and/or education programs will evaluate the applications.
Each evaluator will be asked to score the applications according to the following criteria:

• The applicant has demonstrated through past programs an ability to create innovative outreach programs to teach students about food, fiber and fuel. (30 points)
• The applicant explains how the information gained will be used following the conference. (40 points)
  • Using information in the classroom (20 points maximum)
  • Sharing the information with other educators (20 points maximum)
• The applicant communicates a valid reason for why he/she wants to attend the conference. The applicant explains why agricultural literacy is important part of formal classroom learning. (20 points)
• The state Farm Bureau supports the applicant as indicated by the statement of support and signature. (10 points)

Timeline

• October 15- Applicants submit online application.
• November 1- State Farm Bureau submits signed and approved applications and a recommendation form to the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture.
• Early March -Winners will be notified.
• August 31- Expense reports and written conference reports are due to the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture.
• Reimbursement will be sent to the recipient within 30 days of receipt of expenses and report.

Please Note

To facilitate even distribution of funds, preference will be given to those educators/volunteer educators who have not received scholarships in the past. Educators/volunteer educators receiving scholarships in the past three years are not prohibited from applying and outstanding applications will still be considered. However, the Foundation would prefer that educators/volunteer educators utilize this scholarship opportunity only once every three years and will judge the applications accordingly.

*This scholarship is not stackable with another scholarship to the same conference.