LINCOLN, NEB.– The Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation awarded 22 teachers with funds in support of agricultural education and FFA programs in Nebraska.
“The Dr. Allen G. and Kay L. Blezek Teacher Retention Award is an investment in the future of Nebraska agriculture,” said Megahn Schafer, executive director of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. “We are very proud to support these teachers as they get established in their classrooms and communities. Since agriculture is Nebraska’s leading industry, we know that investing in agricultural education and its teachers will continue to produce returns for years to come.”
Recipients are all agricultural education teachers in their first five years of teaching. Teachers are eligible for increasing awards over time. As the teachers’ impact grows in the classroom, in their FFA chapters, and in their communities each year, the award recognizes their service and supports their efforts. A longtime program of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, the award was renamed in recognition of an estate gift from Dr. Allen Blezek. Dr. Blezek was an agricultural education teacher, the first director of the Nebraska LEAD program, and a founding member of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation board of directors.
The 22 recipients of the scholarships are Kiley Codner, Hall County; Andra Smith, Cherry County; Kelsey Steinkraus, Chase County; Megan Skibinski, Valley County; Kaydie Brandl, Platte County; Colton Husa, Gage County; Maren DeJonge, Richardson County; Toriann Holly, Jefferson County; Nick Birdsley, Douglas County; Trevor Mann, Lincoln County; Hallett Moomey, Buffalo County; Tanner Nun, Gage County; Payden Woodruff, Hall County; Jocelyn Pohl, Morrill County; Kealey Widdowson, Buffalo County; Mikayla Martensen, Platte County; Kylie Kinley, Nuckolls County; Emily Kammerer, Lincoln County; Mai Lee Olsen, Banner County; Kayla Mues, Dundy County; Caleb tenBensel, Custer County; and Lexi Meister, Cuming County.
The mission of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation is to engage youth, educators, and the general public to promote an understanding of the vital importance of agriculture in the lives of all Nebraskans. The Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. For more information about the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, visit www.nefbfoundation.org.
