Tucker Burtch

College English

College Application Essay

September 9th, 2020

A Year Round Teacher

George Washington once said, “Agriculture is the most healthful, most useful and most

noble employment of man.” Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been involved in agriculture in some

way, whether it was from road crops or timber stand improvement or whitetail management. But

these things are things that are taught to you from a more experienced person who has the ability

to teach. This is why my future consists of attending college and earning an agriculture education

degree, getting a good career as an agriculture teacher and FFA advisor, and retiring to raise

cattle or work on the family farm.

One of my personal goals is to become an agricultural teacher for many reasons. One

reason is that my FFA advisors have helped me through my high school career and made it a

little more enjoyable. Through contest teams in the spring and working in the classroom in the

fall winter. Another reason is the impact that they have on some students’ lives is amazing. To

me, one of the hardest teaching jobs is being an ag teacher, as most of them are also the FFA

advisor for the local chapter. Therefore, they have more roles and responsibilities, especially

during the spring and summer months as they help the kids with their supervised agricultural

experiences, which mostly consist of showing animals and crops. Showing kids how to keep

good records financially and improve their projects with their earnings or help them grow from a

loss and help them update their record books and teach them things that they will use more than
some of the math or even science they are learning. Furthermore, how to keep good records

financially and improve their projects with their earnings or help them grow from a loss.

After college, I would like to move to a school where I could start my career pretty

simple but still have a challenge. That way I am more engaged and looking for ways to improve

my students’ experiences by helping them pick out their livestock or a semen choice for their

showstock. This would also help make my job much easier as this is one of my favorite things to

do during the spring. I could also help build their eyes for judging, which helps them pick out

stock later in life and potentially improve my career development events for FFA.

My plans and goals after retirement are to raise either cattle or show pigs. This has been a

lifelong dream since I was introduced to showing pigs and working on a cattle farm. My dream

set up would be to build a 40-foot by 20-foot building and have about six to ten farrowing crates

in it, with a nursery room that can be turned into a chip room where I could then show and sell

pigs. The ideal setup for the cows would be a pasture that leads up to inline bunks where they

could be locked in and sorted or whatever needs to be done. Then, off to the side, I would like to

have a barn with a dirt lot to calve during the fall and spring that way they’re easy to take care of

and can be under better watch. Of course, if this was retirement, I'd like some of this to occur on

the family farm so I can continue the work that has been done in my family for the four to five

generations.

To me, there would be no better living than teaching the younger generations the thing

that I’m most passionate about; in addition, becoming an ag teacher and retiring early would

allow me to still be able to live a few of my other smaller dreams on the side and after my career
as a teacher. So, after I get my degree and teach for 30 to 35 years, I hope to look back at my life

and think about the lives I impacted while looking out over a pasture of cows.