Highland Community College Names Softball Coaches for the 2021-22 Season
Highland Community College is pleased to announce that Gregory Cary has been named the new Head... Read More
Highland Thanks Supporters and Friends of Precision Ag Program
published July 15, 2019Golfers gathered on June 25 at Spring Creek Golf Course in Seneca, Kansas to learn more about Precision Agriculture at Highland. Friends of the program, regional agricultural businesses owners, and producers were treated to 9-holes of golf and a presentation on the program, it’s future and how partnerships are benefitting students, area producers and employers.
Present were alumni of the program, secondary education representatives, local ag producers, Highland staff, and business leaders from several companies including Outback Guidance of Hiawatha, KanEquip, Channel Seed, Modern Ag, Capstan Ag, Grain Belt Insurance, Taylor Seed Farms.
Tournament winners were Brock Hanf and Jason Rockhold with Taylor Seed Farms.
Now retired Highland Community College President David Reist told the group, “we started the Precision Ag program a few years ago and it has just really taken off. Our grads are better prepared and increasingly successful because of relationships with professionals like the ones in this room.”
Cara Baker, Director of the HCC Western Center, spoke to the group about options for Northeast Kansas students at Highland.
“Students throughout the region can take Precision Ag courses during high school through the Excel in Career and Technical Education initiative earning them credit and the ability to enter the workforce right out of high school if they desire.”
Baker added, “this allows business and industry in agriculture a pipeline of qualified employees right here in Northeast Kansas and gives our students a path to opportunity whatever their goals are.”
The Precision Agriculture program at Highland Community College is offered at the Western Center in Baileyville and the Highland campus.
Precision Agriculture, the newest program on the Highland campus, will be housed in a state-of-the-art facility currently undergoing renovations. Students will learn and prepare for the future of agriculture production. Starting with a study of the basic principles of Geographic Information System (GIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) they will learn how the systems, along with emerging technologies, are applied to the site-specific management of production agricultural resources, as a producer, advisor, or technician in the field. Students will get hands-on experience in soil sampling, GIS & GPS technology, computer-based application, variable rate technology and the use of drone technology.
Lucas Hunzinger, Director of Technical Education at Highland Community College Atchison Technical Center, also thanked the group for helping our students connect and noted, “technical education is exploding due to the demand for skilled employees. Highland offers programs that are meeting the needs of business and industry in the region.”
