DENVER, Ind. – Be a servant leader. Put others first. Just be yourself.

When asked if he had any advice to anyone aspiring to become an ag educator, North Miami High School ag teacher and FFA adviser Jim Wildermuth uttered those sentences. Wildermuth lived by those words on his way to being named Indiana FFA’s Golden Owl Award winner during the 96th Indiana FFA State Convention, June 16-19 at Purdue University.

“At first thought, it was just very humbling,” Wildermuth said. “There were a lot of very well deserving ag teachers who were also nominated. Knowing that it came from a community nomination to start with and students who nominated me, it was just a very overwhelmingly humbling experience.”

Wildermuth received the Golden Owl Award trophy and a $3,000 donation to further North Miami’s agricultural education efforts. He is only the third ag educator that North Miami High School has had since it opened its doors in 1961.

“My advice to other ag educators or those aspiring to become ag educators is to strive for that servant leadership and continue to put others first,” Wildermuth said. “Just be yourself, and help the students rise up. If you do that, things will work out.”

The Golden Owl Award is an agricultural education award that recognizes outstanding teachers and their contributions to the future of agriculture. It’s presented by Nationwide in partnership with state FFA organizations and other agricultural partners. The award celebrates teachers who go above and beyond to inspire the next generation of agricultural leaders.

“I took over for my previous ag teacher, Glen Jones, who had taken over for his previous ag teacher, Keith Overton, so there’s a long tradition of amazing community support for the ag program throughout our school’s history,” Wildermuth said.

The Golden Owl Award is presented in California, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Dakota. The Golden Owl Award was initially launched in 2018 in Ohio and Iowa. This year there were more than 4,600 nominations across 13 states.

The nomination period for the Golden Owl Award begins Nov. 1 and ends Dec. 31 each year. Nominators write an essay (1,000 characters or less) describing how the teacher’s dedication to agriculture education, commitment and impact on today’s youth make the teacher a candidate for the Golden Owl Award.

Nominations are judged based on the teacher’s dedication to agriculture education, commitment to the students, the impact made on those students and the teacher’s impact on the school and the community. Nominations were collected for the state’s top agricultural teachers from local students, parents, fellow teachers and community members across Indiana.

Wildermuth was among a field of 149 across Indiana to be nominated for the coveted Golden Owl Award; by March, the field was trimmed to eight finalists.

Other Indiana finalists were Jamie Earnhart (Central Noble High), Chris Kaufman (Westfield High School), Jeff Miller (Sullivan High School), Janna Morgan (North Putnam High School), Rebekah Peterson (DeKalb High School), Kenna Slough (Shakamak High school) and McCord Snider (East Central High School). The seven finalists received an individualized plaque and a $500 donation for each of their respective schools’ ag education programs.

“Behind every thriving ag program is a dedicated teacher planting the seeds for tomorrow’s food and farm innovations,” said Brad Liggett, president of agribusiness at Nationwide. “By spotlighting their impact through the Golden Owl Award, we’re not only honoring their commitment, we’re also investing in the future of agriculture and the students who will shape it.”

Nominations are judged based on the teacher’s dedication to agriculture education, commitment to the students, the impact made on those students and the teacher’s impact on the school and the community. Nominations were collected for the state’s top agricultural teachers from local students, parents, fellow teachers and community members across Indiana.