Tech’s Ag-Science Teacher Wins Acclaim

CREST HAVEN — JoAnn Sopchak believes nothing can be accomplished without science and that’s exactly what she teaches her students in the Landscape/Golf Course Management program at Cape May Tech.
Her ability to blend science into every day curriculum captivates her students and it has also earned her top honors from the FFA organization, according to a release.
Sopchak was named the National Agriscience Teacher of the Year runner up on Oct. 23 at the 82nd FFA convention in Indianapolis, Ind.
The Agriscience Teacher of the Year award recognizes outstanding agriculture teachers who emphasize agriscience technology in their curriculum. Finalists have developed innovative programs in food, environmental, animal, plant, soil and mechanical-engineering sciences.
The program at Cape May Tech focuses on the art and science of ornamental horticulture. Students are able to work in small groups or individually in three greenhouses, landscaped beds, two acres of turf grass, putting green and pond with a waterfall landscaped with plants native to the Jersey shore.
Driven by community demand, the district established a traditional ag ed program at the high school and since then, Sopchak has developed the three-year Landscape/Golf Course Management program.
“Students are better able to grasp concepts when they can relate to the subject material and real world examples,” Sopchak said. “The classroom demonstrations and small learning communities encourage student participation and achievement.”
A resident of Ocean City, Sopchak is a graduate of Texas A & M. She has been a teacher at Cape May Tech since 2000.
The FFA, formerly known as the Future Farmers of America, is a national youth organization of over 500,000 members, all preparing for leadership and careers in the science, business and technology of agriculture as part of 7,439 local chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.