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ND-AgGET Grant | Bismarck State College

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ND-AgGET Grant

A Case Study in Advancing Agricultural & STEM Education in ND

Bismarck State College (BSC) successfully led the North Dakota Agricultural Geospatial Education Training (ND-AgGET) project, a multi-year initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA).

Green USDA logo

The primary goal of the ND-AgGET project was to provide an intensive K-14 teacher professional development training in agricultural applications with Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) in North Dakota.

The project advanced the opportunity of integrating drone and geospatial technology into K–14 classrooms across North Dakota. ND-AgGET helped meet the growing need for data-driven skills in modern agriculture while showing how higher education can support agricultural workforce preparation.

Community members standing by tractors in rural area People working with a drone out in a field
 

Project Significance

As agriculture becomes increasingly reliant on data precision technology, ND-AgGET responded to a critical need for educator training in drone-based data collection and analysis. Prior to this project, intensive professional development focused on agricultural UAS applications had not been offered at scale in North Dakota.

Through ND-AgGET, educators gained the tools and confidence to teach emerging agricultural technologies, enabling students to explore real-world applications such as crop health monitoring, land analysis, water resource assessment, and environmental stewardship.
 

Goals and Measurable Outcomes

The primary goal of ND-AgGET was to deliver immersive professional development that empowered K-14 educators to integrate UAS technology into agricultural and STEM instruction.


Project Outcomes Included:

  • 40 K-14 teachers and faculty trained through hands-on summer workshops
  • 30+ agriculturally focused lesson plans developed and published as open educational resources
  • 100% of participating educators demonstrating increased knowledge and practical skills in UAS for agricultural science education and STEM careers
  • Hundreds of students impacted annually, with long-term reach extending to thousands across North Dakota
These outcomes ensured that the project’s benefits can be utilized beyond the grant period through helpful, openly accessible curriculum materials

Workers looking at drone mechanisms  Man smiling while holding drone remote

Group of people outside at farm learning about agriculture
 

Grant Implementation & Use of Funds

Professional Development Delivery
Bismarck State College hosted multi-day summer workshops that provided educators with:
  • Hands-on experience operating UAS equipment
  • Training in collecting and analyzing agricultural imagery
  • Instruction on applying geospatial data to agronomy and STEM lessons
A final capstone session allowed participants to refine lesson plans, reflect on classroom implementation, and document lessons learned for future replication.

Curriculum Creation & Distribution
Teachers participating in ND-AgGET developed standards-aligned, agriculture-based lesson plans that:
  1. Explained how drone technology works
  2. Used real imagery for problem-solving and analysis
  3. Introduced students to STEM and agronomy career pathways
Key Lesson Topics:
  • UAS technology and implications of the technology, an understanding of the technology and how it works
  • How to use the drone to capture basic imagery, photo identify crops and other natural resources
  • How to identify where problems are occurring such as unhealthy corn amidst healthy crops
  • How to identify landscapes where cattle could graze because of greener grass
  • How to identify natural hazards that could affect grazing