Melanie Bloom, 2025 Iowa Teacher of the Year, said growing up on a farm and finding her place in FFA shaped her passion for teaching. In her ag classroom, she focuses on hands-on learning, leadership development, and career exploration to prepare young people for roles across the food and fiber system and beyond.
Bloom grew up on a diversified crop and livestock farm in northwest Iowa and was active in FFA. She earned an ag education degree from Iowa State University and began teaching at Sioux Central Community Schools, about an hour from her home farm.
The rural school didn't have an ag program. "It has been fun building something from scratch," she said. "I just love that my students can find a place in my classroom." Despite being in a rural area, most of Bloom's students don't live on farms. The program shows them there are careers in agriculture beyond production.
As the 2025 Iowa Teacher of the Year, Melanie Bloom is spending this school year visiting classrooms across the state and meeting with teachers of the year from other states. "Meeting other really passionate educators has been really encouraging for me," she said. "I'm the only ag teacher in the group of 56, so I've gotten to share that again education still exists." One highlight of the year was standing on the field with the group during the national anthem before the college football championship game.
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