Schools salutes Corinth Holders ag teacher

Ashley Holloman, who teaches agriculture at Corinth Holders High School, is Johnston County’s Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year for 2024.

Early on in life, Holloman thought that she might want to be a teacher. She loved playing teacher as a child, and she enjoyed going to school, excited to learn each day.

One day in high school, Holloman had a teacher who said she could see her becoming an elementary school teacher. Holloman had a different vision for herself.

A suburban girl growing up in Wayne County, she had no real experience with agriculture until she took a class during her freshman year of high school. Then, at one point, the teacher suggested she compete in the Future Farmers of America speaking contest. That’s where her adventures in agriculture and FFA began.

The FFA’s public speaking competition allows young people to showcase their agricultural knowledge and ability to think on their feet by giving a speech and answering questions with limited prep time. The event challenges students to practice their presentation skills, articulation and logical thinking while advocating for agriculture and agricultural education.

Participants draw from 18 agricultural topics, then select three of interest. From those three, a student chooses the topic for his or her speech and has 30 minutes to prepare a presentation using only five resources. Participants then present a speech on their topic to a panel of judges. Afterward, students answer five minutes worth of questions on the topic they presented.

Holloman began competing in public speaking during her freshman year of high school, and in her junior year, she placed fourth in the state. For her senior year, Holloman decided to switch things up and compete in the FFA’s parliamentary procedure event. In that competition, students are judged on their knowledge of parliamentary law and their ability to present logical, realistic and convincing motions and debates.

Holloman said that first agriculture class and the exposure she received as a high school student were the most influential on her future. She wanted to make an impact on high school students, so she decided to study agriculture and education at N.C. State University.

Holloman was named a Goodnight Scholar, which provided a full-tuition scholarship. She immersed herself in the curriculum, earning a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and Extension education, with minors in animal science and leadership in agricultural and life sciences.

Holloman hasn’t slowed down since, building a resume filled with professional memberships, recognitions, certifications and instructional training. However, the accolades aren’t what drives Holloman. Her focus is on making an impact on the students in her classroom each year. “You don’t have to have a background in agriculture to have a passion for agriculture,” she said.

Although most of her students are not interested in farming per se, she shows them how agriculture extends far beyond raising crops and milking cows. Biotechnology, the fuel and fiber industries, and marketing are in the agriculture corral as well. “Everyone has to eat, and everyone wears clothes, so we are all connected,” Holloman said.

Her students take part in hands-on activities that include injection labs, taking water samples and, most recently, making art from plastic bottle caps in honor of Earth Day. The bottle cap art will go to a local nursing home for the residents to enjoy. “It’s a cross-curricular opportunity to talk about recycling and giving back to the community,” Holloman said.

While providing her students with some knowledge and understanding of the importance of agriculture, Holloman hopes to inspire them no matter what they want to do in the future. “The biggest thing is thinking of ways to genuinely make a connection with my students,” she said.

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