May 12 Cooperative Extension Service event to showcase agriculture's role across education
April 20, 2026
By Ryan McGeeney
University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture
Fast Facts
- Event will showcase agriculture’s role across academic disciplines
- Attendees invited to see educational spaces at NERREC
- No cost to attend
(349 words)
Download flyer, file photo of Ussery
HARRISBURG, Ark. — Educators, administrators and parents are invited to the Agriculture Across All Curriculum Showcase, an event designed to illustrate how agriculture plays a part in every walk of life and applies to a wide variety of intellectual disciplines.
Ashlyn Ussery, extension agriculture and natural resources educator for the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, will be on hand at the event, scheduled for 4-6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 12, at the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center in Harrisburg, Arkansas.
Ussery described it as a “come and go” event during which attendees will have the opportunity to tour the center’s educational classroom, kitchen and greenhouse.
“I’ll be delivering a short presentation at 4:15 and again at 5:15,” Ussery said. “But other than that, this is primarily a chance for teachers and parents to tour our facility and see what the NERREC is.
“I want folks to take a deeper look at our education program and see what kind of hands-on activities are available to them and their students, either as a field trip destination, or for me to come to their classroom as an educator to do a hands-on lesson about agriculture with them,” she said.
Ussery said that a common misconception among educators is that agricultural subjects are best left within ag programs.
“Our main audience is teachers who aren’t in agriculture,” Ussery said. “We’re not excluding ag programs at all, but the science teacher, the math teacher, the career and technology teacher — those are the teachers we’re really wanting to reach out to, to connect with and reach their students.”
An activity Ussery uses to demonstrate the physical and mechanical properties at work in agriculture, for example, employs sandpaper to show how the outer hull is removed from rough rice grains to reveal brown rice — which still has a layer of bran — and finally white rice.
Ussery said the lessons and activities employed by the center align with Arkansas’ academic standards and curriculum guidelines.
The event will provide gift bags to attendees containing resource guides and information. The event is free, and registration is not required.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. To learn more about ag and food research in Arkansas, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station at aaes.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture is an equal opportunity institution. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate or need materials in another format, please contact Ashlyn Ussery at 501-414-9766 as soon as possible. Dial 711 for Arkansas Relay.
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Media Contact:
Ryan McGeeney
rmcgeeney@uada.edu
501-671-2120