Edison State, Miami County Farm Bureau Host Agriculture Career Fair

Edison State Community College and the Miami County Farm Bureau partnered to host the first annual Agriculture Career Fair on March 15, 2024. Approximately 140 students from about 10 local agriculture programs attended, where they visited with local businesses and learned about career opportunities available in agriculture.

“The Miami County Farm Bureau, in conjunction with Edison State, was happy to host our first annual Agriculture Career Fair,” said Taylor Watkins, Organizational Director at the Miami County Farm Bureau. “The Miami County Board of Trustees started this project months ago, with the goal of promoting local agriculture businesses and encouraging students to look into a career in agriculture. We’re so happy Edison State joined us, and we look forward to offering this event again in the future.”

Businesses exhibiting at the career fair included Apple Farm Service, B & B Agvantages, Buckeye Ag Testing, Cargill, Cooper Farms, Edison State’s Agriculture Department, Farm Credit Mid America, Farm Service Agency/USDA, Keystone Cooperative, Krone, Miami County Farm Bureau, Miami County Soil and Water Conservation District, North Star Hardware and Implement, NRCS–Troy Office, Nutrien Ag Solutions, Ohio Country Journal, Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio Division of Wildlife, Ohio State University Extension–Miami County, R.E. Skillings, Sunrise Cooperative, and Wright State University–Lake Campus.

“We created this event to let local students know there are many careers in agriculture available in this area,” said Brad Lentz, Agriculture Program Director at Edison State. “Our agriculture program works with a number of local agricultural companies, and the demand for agricultural careers is very high. Too often students think that agriculture only means farming, but the field is so much broader. There are many jobs that work to support the farming industry by either supplying inputs farmers need or purchasing the products farmers create.”

Special thanks go to Farm Credit Mid America for sponsoring lunch, Edison State staff Rhonda Rich and Melissa Eve for managing the welcome table, and Edison State’s maintenance team for preparing the facilities.

Students interested in learning more about careers in agriculture should call Edison State at Greenville at 937.548.5546. Learn more about the Ohio Farm Bureau by visiting www.ofbf.org/commmunity/counties/miami.