M. Susie Whittington, an Ohio State University professor of agriscience education in the Department of Agricultural Communication, Education and Leadership (ACEL), has been selected as president-elect of the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture.

FOSTERING SUCCESS: Susie Whittington, an OSU agriscience professor, is also executive director for the university's STEP, a university-wide scheme focused on student success and development.

NACTA, which was formed in 1955 as a professional society, focuses on the scholarship of teaching and learning in agriculture and related disciplines at the postsecondary level. Members of NACTA are from two-year and four-year colleges, both public and private.

Whittington will serve as president-elect for 2020-21 and will take over leadership of the organization at the 2021 annual conference, which is scheduled to be held at OSU’s Wooster campus in June.

All-around ag education leader

Since joining ACEL in 2000, Whittington has taught a variety of courses in the agriscience education major, preparing students to become high school agricultural educators through teaching methods, cultural proficiency and program planning, as well as graduate courses in data collection and advanced teaching methods.

In addition to her faculty role with ACEL, Whittington serves as executive director for OSU’s Second-Year Transformational Experience Program (STEP), a university-wide program focused on student success and development. STEP allows students opportunities to engage in high-impact practices tailored to their individual interests and needs.

“We are so proud in ACEL and Ohio State to have our very own Dr. Susie Whittington serve as president in this premier international organization,” says Scott Scheer, a professor and the interim chair of ACEL. “NACTA is fortunate to have Dr. Whittington in this role because she brings in a wealth of national and university leadership experience, from serving as president in the American Association for Agricultural Education [AAAE] to the university-wide Director of STEP at Ohio State. NACTA will certainly thrive and improve with Dr. Whittington as its president.”

Whittington says, “As a member of NACTA since the early 1990s, my teaching has benefited from the talent and expertise of its members. I look forward to giving-back and to paying forward to a society that has given so much to me.”

Whittington is a three-time graduate of OSU, earning bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in agricultural education in 1982, 1988 and 1991, respectively.

ACEL prepares communicators, educators and leaders in the food, agricultural and environmental sciences to integrate research-based learning, practice and engagement in ways that will advance positive changes that strengthen individuals, families and communities. For more information on the academic programs and research available in ACEL, or to donate to student scholarships, visit acel.osu.edu.

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