Michele Sutton
Tompkins Seneca Tioga BOCES
Ithaca, New York
The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation and the American Farm Bureau Federation are honored to have awarded the achievements of the 2011 $10,000 Agriscience Educator’s Award Columbus Scholar.
Michele Sutton grew up in Greenville, NY, on a small hobby farm with her parents and three siblings. She was active in FFA and 4-H, and worked in many facets of agriculture–inspired by her own Ag Teacher and FFA Advisor.
Michele left her ten-year career in government, to pursue an education degree when she realized that her true calling was to work with young people in a field she was truly passionate about – agriculture. During her first secondary school teaching position, she transformed an outdated, struggling program of 13 students into a program of more than 100 students in two short years. In 2005, she became the Tompkins-Seneca-Tioga BOCES teacher of the New Visions in Life Sciences program at Cornell University where she has taught agricultural science for the past six years.
Michele earned her bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill, and a Masters of Arts in Teaching from Cornell University.
The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation is honored to have had the assistance of the following distinguished individuals serving on the 2011 Agriscience Awards Evaluation Committee:
- Robert W. Clark, Ph.D.
Professional Personnel Development Center
Workforce Education & Development Program
Penn State University
University Park, Pennsylvania - Gary Matteson
VP Young, Beginning, Small Farmer
Programs and Outreach
The Farm Credit Council
Washington, D.C. - Meghan Mueseler
Cargill, Inc.
Wichita, Kansas - Pat Earle
Instructor
McBee High School
McBee, South Carolina
