Perceptions of Florida Secondary School Principals toward Agricultural Education

Abstract

In American public schools, the bulk of financial decisions have been left up to local boards of education, local school superintendents, and individual school principals. Traditionally, principals have been considered the utmost leader in their schools. Agricultural education has been linked to student achievement in a variety of ways. The National Council for Agricultural Education’s Strategic Plan for Agricultural Education included a “call to increase the number of quality agricultural education programs” around the nation. Currently, there are no data on how Florida decision makers perceive agricultural education programs and how their perceptions align with the values of principals. Additionally, the relative lack of growth in FFA Chapters around the country and in Florida is concerning. The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of secondary agricultural education programs held by Florida secondary school principals. The results of this study found that Florida secondary school principals have positive perceptions of agricultural education programs. Additionally, the presence of a local secondary agricultural education program influences the perceptions of Florida secondary school principals. Demographics had many influences on the perceptions of Florida secondary school principals. A key finding was the influence of student achievement on funding decisions of principals.