Agricultural Education Major Equally Inspired and Inspiring

Story by senior Taylor Lacey

Countless hours in the back of the van, evaluating hundreds of animals each day, and endless pacing and repetition can sum up the life of a livestock judge. It’s Megan Rivera’s experience nearly every weekend.

As part of a farming and ranching family, the senior agricultural education major is no stranger to agriculture. In Future Farmers of America, she enjoyed competing on career development teams, showing livestock, and gaining leadership experience, but it wasn’t until her senior year of high school that her yearning to get back into the classroom became clear.

“I always thought teaching ag would be a fun, rewarding career, but when we got a new ag teacher my senior year of high school, it became a reality,” she said. “[Rebecca Mendonza] had a love for working with students and managing a classroom that was amazing.”

Her collegiate journey began at Modesto Junior College (MJC) as an agricultural education major. She started to think about where she wanted to go next.

“I knew that Chico [State] had the best ag ed department out there. I had a great connection in high school and junior college with Dr. [Brad] Dodson, and getting to know him, and Dr. [Mollie] Aschenbrener was a great way to really show me what Chico had to offer,” Rivera said. “The summer after my freshman year, at the [California Agricultural Teachers Association] conference, I remember Dr. A running over to me and throwing her business card down, yelling, ‘Come to Chico, we love MJC kids!’ It was that moment I knew that Chico would be the perfect place for me.”

Meanwhile, at MJC, her passion for the industry grew through her courses and while working for Adam Mendonza with the show swine operation No Limit Genetics, which ultimately opened up even more opportunities once she got to Chico. Stemming from a simple text between Mendonza and Chico State lecturer and judging coach Clay Carlson, Rivera gained a spot on the Chico State livestock judging team and a job at the University Farm swine unit.

With a particular passion for pigs, the swine unit is where she spends much of her time when she’s not on campus or traveling with her team. Rivera has been at the unit for two years, works as the herdsman, and lives at the farm.

“It’s definitely a lot of work being out there all the time, and I have my personal alarm clock each morning with hungry sows, but I’ve enjoyed all the experience I’ve gained,” she said.

Rivera competed on the 2018 Academic Quadrathalon Team and the 2019 Livestock Judging Team, and participated in the Young Cattlemen’s Association and Rangeland Management club.

“Megan has been a great employee and has definitely contributed to the success of the unit. Her positive attitude and excitement will make her a very good high school agriculture teacher, who will hopefully become a great asset for the College of Agriculture, sending us students like her in the future,” Carlson said.

Broadening her perspective in agriculture, Rivera worked at Duarte Nursery in Hughson with a sales representative during this past summer, although her roots will always tie back to animal science and dreams of teaching.

“Ultimately, I’d like to get my master’s, but I’m excited to teach high school students,” she said. “They’re really weird and really cool, so I can’t wait to teach. At that age, I feel like you make the biggest impact and really influence these students.”

She knows the value of such influence. Rivera said that at Chico State, people define the welcoming community, with faculty who push students to be their best but also care and want to connect.

“The ag ed faculty have this undeniable love for what they do, and their facilitation skills are always a great representation for what we should strive for in our own classrooms,” she said.

Aschenbrener, who Rivera said continues to be a role model, said she holds the aspiring teacher in equal esteem.

“I’ve gotten to see Megan as a facilitator in FFA and at Chico State, and I’ve been thoroughly impressed. She’s competent, and her desire to work with young students is amazing, so I’m excited to see her in the classroom,” said Aschenbrener.

Beyond her faculty, Rivera said she wouldn’t be the same without the love and support of her close-knit family. Being a first-generation college student, she recognizes her journey has not been easy and credits her family with getting her here today.

“They have no doubt had the biggest influence on my life, considering how close we all have been my entire life,” she said. “The support of my family and excitement that the agriculture faculty had for me being here gives me a sense of excitement each and every day. I wouldn’t be where I am, who I am, or what I am without them, and each day I am so thankful for that.”

As she graduates this fall and begins her new career in education, Rivera is enthusiastic about moving back to the Central Valley to pursue her teaching career and start a family.

“I look forward to influencing students wherever I end up,” she said.

Editor’s Note: This story was originally published as a Student Spotlight for the College of Agriculture. Read more of its spotlights here.

Senior Taylor Lacey is the public information intern for the College of Agriculture. She is double majoring in animal science and agricultural education.