Distance Education Needs of Agribusinesses and Professional Agriculture Associations

For this assessment, 66 agribusinesses and 61 associations provided usable data by the end of the data collection period (August 6, 1993). Major findings were that programming targeted to individual firms and associations as well as general programming that applies to multiple audiences are of high interest, i.e. (1) conferences, seminars, short courses, workshops, and meeting; (2) certificate or licensure programs; and, (3) contemporary issues programming. Graduate and undergraduate courses in agronomy, entomology, food science, personnel evaluation, management, and strategic planning were preferred most by the firms. Desired proprietary programming focuses upon employee training, new products being developed, and marketing strategies. However, firms indicated a strong desire to protect such programming from being downlinked by competitors. Most often, training directors, firm presidents, and association presidents make the decision to commit the resources to subscribe to distance education. As opposed to the universities, the firms and associations need less than six months to decide to subscribe to a program or course. Most indicated that they would pay $1,000 or less, to subscribe to credit courses. The Vocational Education Act of 1963 and the Vocational Education Amendment of 1968 provided the legal authority for agricultural educators to begin formally preparing students for agribusiness employment requiring less than a baccalaureate degree. Three decades after this legislation, secondary and post-secondary instructors deliver instruction that students need to acquire such employment. At the university level, preparation for agribusiness employment has received limited attention from agricultural education faculty. However, distance education technologies now provide such faculty with opportunities to initiate and in some instances expand their involvement with the agribusiness sector. The potential of distance education technologies is such that a number of agricultural and extension education faculty are exploring opportunities to deliver instruction for audiences that they have traditionally not served through credit courses. However, inherent in the delivery of such instruction are issues of when and where the instruction will be delivered, by whom, and through what means. Yet, even with these uncertainties, distant education is being explored extensively as an alternative for students having to come to university campuses to (1) enroll in credit courses; (2) pursue graduate and undergraduate degrees; and, (3) participate in noncredit certificate, licensure, and professional development programs.