The Curriculum for Agricultural Science and Education has announced that Keely DiTizio, an ag teacher at Salem County Career and Technical School in Mannington Township, N.J., is the 2020 CASE National Innovation Award winner.

The award highlights a creative classroom and teaching approach as CASE-certified teachers implement and promote the curriculum.

DiTizio was honored at the National Association of Agricultural Educators Convention between Nov. 30 and Dec. 4. The convention was held virtually this year.

"As a lifelong learner, I love thinking of new ways to teach, inspire or impact my students,” DiTizio says. “It really enriches my life, and I get very excited about implementing new ideas or programs into my school's Academy of Agricultural Sciences.”

DiTizio founded Salem Tech’s Academy of Agricultural Sciences and revamped the program by implementing one of the first full CASE pathways in the country, which prepares students for the science, business and technology of agriculture.

GARDEN TALK: Keely DiTizio talks to students in one of the school’s gardens. The FFA chapter she advises has twice been named most improved chapter in the state.

DiTizio’s innovative courses for agriscience quadrupled the average number of freshmen recruited to the program within the first five years and continue to be a popular choice for Salem Tech students.

The FFA chapter she advises has been named New Jersey FFA’s Most Improved Chapter twice in her tenure.

Her husband, Matt, also is an agriculture instructor at the school, and she finds they complement one another as educators.

“Every evening after work, we go for a postgame walk, which we coined because we discuss the highlights, the triumphs and tribulations of our workday in the classroom,” DiTizio says. “Through our informal discussions, we identify areas of need, and we brainstorm and problem-solve together."

Along with developing the CASE program at Salem Tech, DiTizio had a mobile chicken coop built by agriculture students on school grounds.

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