College of Agriculture

Brad Dodson

Professor & California FFA Liason

Personal Information

For 34 years, Brad Dodson has been involved in agricultural education. He taught high school vocational agriculture at Lemoore High School for six years, teaching primarily production agriculture courses. He then accepted a lecture position at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo where his duties included coordinating the statewide in-service program for high school and community college agriculture teachers as well as teaching undergraduate agricultural education courses such as the Future Farmers of America, supervised occupational experience programs, computers, and field experience. While at Cal Poly, he received his master’s degree in agriculture.

After six years in San Luis Obispo, he enrolled at Texas A&M University as a PhD graduate student in agricultural education. On a teaching assistantship, Dodson taught courses and advised students and the Collegiate FFA chapter. He was then hired by the California Department of Education as a regional supervisor for the Northern California area. He advised the regional FFA program and provided technical assistance to high school agriculture teachers.

Dodson now coordinates the agriculture teacher education program here at CSU, Chico. He teaches agricultural education courses (see list below) and advises undergraduate and graduate students. He serves as the advisor of the Collegiate FFA and oversees the team of students and faculty who organize the CSU, Chico/Butte College FFA Field Day, which brings nearly 2,000 high school students to campus to compete in various skills competitions and serves as the single largest recruitment activity for the College of Agriculture.

Dodson lives in Chico with his wife of over 30 years, Debbie. Debbie is a high school teacher and school counselor at Paradise High School. They have two children, Bryan and Breanna. Bryan has accepted a position at Liberty Ranch High School in Galt as an agriscience and agricultural mechanics teacher. Brea is a senior liberal studies major here at CSU, Chico.

Courses

Brad teaches most of the agricultural education courses required for the Specialist Instructional Credential in Agriculture and Single Subject Credential. They include:

  • AGED 201: Introduction to Agricultural Education
  • AGED 210: Early Field Experience
  • AGED 312: Program Development in Agricultural Education
  • AGRI 380B: Leadership and Fair Management
  • AGED 420: Techniques in Vocational Agricultural Instruction
  • AGED 520: Student Teaching: Agriculture
  • AGED 521: Curriculum and Methods of Teaching Vocational Agriculture
  • AGRI 380A: Agricultural Leadership

Research and Professional Interests

Dodson is very interested in leadership development. He has had the opportunity to work with the State Association of the Future Farmers of America and National FFA Organization as an officer trainer, workshop presenter, speaker, and member of several task forces on leadership development. He has developed several resources for teachers to utilize in their roles as an FFA advisors and classroom instructors including a chapter officer training guide and a program of activities planning tool.

He is also interested in teacher recruitment and retention. He is initiating a project that is designed to investigate the reasons why teachers leave the profession and then return.

Service to the College, University, and Community

Brad is the advisor for Chico State Collegiate FFA and the advisor for the Inter-Club Council. He is also the advisor of the FFA Field Day, Parliamentary Procedure Contest, and the Superior Region Prepared Public Speaking Contest.

Dodson also conducts leadership workshops at the National FFA Convention, the New Professionals Conference and Student Teacher Conclave, and the Teacher Workshop for Ag Teachers in Arizona.

Dodson and his students conduct team building training at Camp Tehama for the Chapter Officers’ Leadership Conference for the Superior FFA Region. Brad also assists with state and regional FFA officer candidate training, state officer training, and the Paradise High School Counselors Team Building Retreat.

In past years, Dodson has hosted the Superior Region Leadership contest, judged the semifinals of the Creed Speaking and Prepared Public Speaking contests, assisted with the State Parliamentary Procedure contest, attended the regional and sectional CATA meetings, judged the Chico Science Fair, advised the Out in the Country day camp with Recreational Sports, and consulted the Delta Teachers Conference. He has also served on a number of committees including Single Subject Advisors, the AGED Advisory Committee, and the Position Search Committee.

Portrait of Brad Dodson