KCEDC Ag Career Days, farm career-exploration experience for students, returns

Chris Rugowski

Contributor

March 24, 2025

KEWAUNEE COUNTY – Ag Career Days, a two-day, farm career-exploration experience open to all seventh- and eighth-grade students from five Northeast Wisconsin school districts, will be held April 29-30 at Ebert Enterprises dairy farm in Algoma.

Presented by the Kewaunee County Economic Development Corporation (KCEDC), the free event is expected to draw more than 900 students from the Algoma, Denmark, Kewaunee, Luxemburg-Casco and Southern Door school districts with parochial and home-schooled students also participating.

Executive Director Ben Nelson said the KCEDC launched Ag Career Days in 2012, establishing it as a biennial event.

He said it was subsequently held in 2014, 2016 and 2018, becoming recognized as one of Wisconsin’s largest farm career-exploration gatherings.

Though it wasn’t held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nelson said, it returned in 2023 at Pagel’s Ponderosa Dairy in Kewaunee.

Importance of the event

Nelson said Ag Career Days is designed to expose students to a cross section of potential career areas that all interact or relate with agriculture.

The event, he said, shows students the many different aspects of agriculture – including agronomy, cropping, horticulture, animals, animal nutrition, milk testing, cheese making, agriculture support services, the business of agriculture and technology.

Nelson said this is important because agriculture is the largest industry in Kewaunee County, amounting to $80 million overall, with $65 million coming from the dairy industry alone.

There’s approximately 2,300 jobs in the county, he said, directly tied to agriculture.

“Farming is more than just milking cows and riding tractors,” he said. “We will be featuring eight different career clusters that students will be rotating through to get a very comprehensive overview of all the different career options that impact agriculture. Typically, the presenters are invited by the host farm, so they can tap into their current vendor relationship to offer their unique perspectives on how they approach their place in the industry.”

Relating this event to the modern day and future of farming, Nelson said, is an imperative function of this event.

He said its value from an educational standpoint is critical, no matter what kind of diet you subscribe to or where you live.

Nelson said agriculture touches everyone in some way, shape or form, and in a lot of ways most people don’t realize.

“When you pick up a package of cheese at the grocery store, do you ever stop to consider the journey it took to get there?” he said. “From the farm where it all begins to the complex network of logistics and people that bring it to your table, every bite has a story that most people rarely think about.”

Creating connections through the event, as well as curating a thorough understanding of the different aspects of the circle of agriculture – whether that’s drones in the sky to survey fields or science degrees for chemicals, or veterinarian degrees for animal care – is the overall goal.

What can students look forward to

Nelson said during the event, students will rotate through eight stations, getting about 20 minutes per station.

Many of the presenters, he said, will have some type of activity, too.

Nelson said a local construction company’s presentation centers around its agricultural approach toward its work.

“Their display is interactive, where they have a mock up of something they regularly build,” he said. “They have students put on the safety harness. They give them a hammer and a nail and have them hammer boards together. It’s engaging for the students, and it helps them make the connection to its place in agriculture.”

Though the career clusters stay similar throughout the years, in order to keep it as a unique event, Nelson said each year is slightly different.

Getting students, adults involved

Nelson said the biggest goal of the event is to get as many students there as they can, and “plant the seeds” that a career in agriculture exists right in their own backyard – therein taking a proactive approach to keeping talent in the area.

A byproduct of the day, he said, is giving middle school students the opportunity to start thinking about youth apprenticeship programs, or even employment as they enter high school.

“Because they were able to participate in the day’s events, they’ve already made some connections with different employers in different areas around the county that could potentially take them on, and help them toward their future careers,” he said.

Nelson said the event also has an impact on adults who serve as chaperones or leaders – furthering educating them on the different aspects of the agricultural industry and their importance.

“I would hope students and adults absorb (all the information presented) and think about the broader impact agriculture has,” he said.

Rural but still important

Nelson said according to the Department of Workforce Development, KCEDC’s Ag Career Days in 2023 was the largest agricultural career exploration event in the state in 2023.

He said KCEDC is hoping to continue that in 2025.

Though Kewaunee is a rural county and farming is a major part of its culture, Nelson said he knows that not all kids grow up on farms. 

“We strive for any exposure and understanding,” he said. “It’s a good thing, and if nothing else it raises awareness. We know students getting into high school hear about apprenticeship programs, but what they don’t sometimes understand is who’s available as an employer and what job they can do in agriculture.”

At the end of the day, Nelson said this event opens eyes to possibilities, while breaking stereotypes of what a farm is.

That, he said, is the key for him, KCEDC’s board of directors and the community.

Nelson said he knows as communities grow and subdivisions begin to be built more and more, some people may only experience a farm from driving by.

Events like Ag Career Days, he said, provides people working in the agriculture industry with an opportunity to give their perspective and encourage a future workforce, while dispelling some of the misconceptions that might exist around agriculture.

Now and into the future

Though a lot of work goes into planning the event, Nelson said he knows the community benefits highly from this event in the long run. 

“A lot of the agricultural operations that we have in our county need a lot of manpower, so it behooves them to try and cultivate the next generation of people that are going to support and grow their industry from that standpoint,” he said.

Beyond that, Nelson said what he enjoys most about the event is seeing leaders from across the county working in collaboration with, and learning from, each other.

This, he said, is something that is unique to the agriculture industry in his county.

“They’re not only showing leadership by being collaborative, they’re helping grow awareness and understanding for the next generation of agriculture leaders,” he said. “This is a huge victory. Not only (does the event) highlight the vital role of agriculture, but it also inspires the next generation to explore the many opportunities within this essential industry.”

For more on the event, including how to get involved, visit kewauneecountyedc.org.