About The Owl’s Nest
The job of an agriculture teacher is hard…there’s no denying that. There are lessons to develop, CDE teams to coach, events to plan and meetings to coordinate. Sometimes it can seem as though you cannot add one more thing to your to-do list. The Owl’s Nest was designed to provide agriculture teachers with a roost to stand on. Whether you are in need of full-year curriculum or one unit, there are resources for you to be successful in the classroom. If CDE and LDE materials are where you need support, The Owl’s Nest has a variety of resources to allow your students to be competitive at that next contest.
Through ready-to-use resources, The Owl’s Nest wants to help make this challenging, yet rewarding career, within agriculture education one where you can continue to soar for years to come. As agriculture teachers by choice, not chance, it is important to minimize that to-do list so you can focus on maximizing student opportunities and growth in this amazing profession.
Derek McCracken
Founder + Education Consultant
As a former Ohio agriculture teacher with nearly 10 years of classroom experience, Derek knows the amazing impact this profession can have on its students. Through a decade of classroom experience, Derek focused on providing his students with hands-on, experiential learning opportunities that provided students with a real-world application of agriculture. His students thrived in FFA through CDEs, the national chapter award and proficiencies at the national level. Derek has been awarded the OAAE Early Career Teacher Award, OAAE Cooperation Award, Excellence in Education Award and the Golden Apple Teacher Award.
Over the years, Derek found his passion for mentoring and supporting agriculture teachers through his role as a National Teacher Ambassador for FFA, OAAE A0 Pathway Chair and Ohio FFA Board of Trustees member. He wanted to provide agriculture teachers with the resources necessary to allow all teachers to find success within this rewarding profession. The Owl’s Nest came to fruition to provide agriculture teachers with a roost to stand on, no matter their level of experience, by providing curriculum, as well as FFA and CDE resources so we, as agriculture teachers, can continue to immerse our students in the many facets of agriculture education.