Did you know that the ag industry is one of the largest employers in the United States? Agriculture and its related industries provided 21.1 million full- and part-time jobs in 2021 — or 10.5 percent of total U.S. employment! So it shouldn’t surprise you to learn that agriculture isn’t just for those seeking careers on farms or ranches.
One of the programs I manage in my work at Bayer is Grow Ag Leaders, a Bayer Fund scholarship program, which awards more than $500,000 in scholarships every year. The prospective majors of our 2023 scholarship recipients demonstrate some of the incredibly diverse college majors that feed into the field of agriculture: Animal Breeding and Genetics; Diesel Mechanics; Environmental Engineering; Communications; Welding; Natural Resources Management; Landscape Architecture; Forest Management; Parks, Recreation & Tourism Studies; and many more.
One of our recent scholarship recipients perfectly illustrates how a love of agriculture can transform into a promising career. Alaina Gebel from Waukon, Iowa, received a Grow Ag Leaders scholarship in 2023. She is currently a freshman at Iowa State University, studying agricultural education.
“Receiving the Grow Ag Leaders scholarship has given me the opportunity to further my education, which will one day assist me in attaining my goal of educating the next generation of leaders in agriculture,” said Gebel.
During her first semester of college, she joined several student organizations — Sigma Alpha professional agriculture sorority, Agronomy Club, International Agriculture Club and Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow Club — and helped create the Country Swing Dancing Club. In 2024, she is taking study-abroad trips to Costa Rica and Rome to expand her knowledge of global agriculture.
Gebel urges other FFA members and young alumni to take advantage of the support offered by National FFA donors and partners, like Bayer, to help them reach their goals in college.
“I encourage other FFA members and young alums to apply for FFA scholarships because having financial aid in college is extremely beneficial,” she said. “FFA has many generous donors who believe in the mission of FFA and understand the impact that they make on youth’s lives.”
Gebel is a shining example of the many people, in all sorts of jobs and career paths, who contribute to the daily process of putting food on our plates. Developing the next generation of ag leaders — whether they be lawyers or educators, financial specialists or drone technologists, data processors or engineers — is critical to ensure a workforce of the future to support farmers in their noble work of feeding, clothing and fueling a changing world.
“There is a place for everyone in the agriculture industry due to the diverse skill sets that are required in the countless job opportunities,” said Gebel.
