Most people have heard of Miss America. The title may evoke Images of Sandra Bullock sneaking donuts into her sequin gown and prancing in a bikini. But for two Institute of Applied Agriculture students, their “Miss” experience wasn’t a beauty pageant; it’s was so much more.
Miss Maryland Agriculture Ambassador, which has been part of the Maryland State Fair since 1930, has the mission of encouraging young women to reach their fullest potential in agriculture: “Surfacing young women with an agricultural background to serve as leaders to promote our industry and the Farm Bureau organization throughout the year and in the future.” The contest runs for two days, and one of the 23 contestants—young women between the ages of 16-19, each representing one of the Maryland Farm Bureau’s 23 counties—becomes the Maryland agriculture ambassador. For over 90 years, the Maryland State Fair and the Maryland Farm Bureau have collaborated to create a contest for future agricultural leaders that will be both memorable and educational. In keeping with the times, the organization has changed the name of the contest from the original Miss Timonium in the 1940s, Timonium Farm Queen, Farm Queen and Maryland Farm Queen in the 1950s, to Maryland Agriculture Ambassador and Miss Maryland Agriculture.
Three of the women at the IAA have participated in the contest: Haley Moore (currently a first-year student in Agricultural Business Management at the IAA); Rebecka Jones (the IAA’s Student Services Coordinator); and Glori Hyman (the IAA’s Director). Each of them shared their personal experience, talked about what Miss Maryland Agriculture meant to them, and explained the work that goes into competing for the opportunity to be a Miss. They told stories of countless hours preparing for speeches and learning the rules and regulations of the Farm Bureau to answer impromptu questions for interviews. But that was secondary to the passion they all shared for agriculture and the fun they had meeting women who share that passion.
When asked, “What drew you to the contest?” Moore discussed her love of horses and the need for agricultural education in grade schools. During her reign, she taught a group of second graders where their food was sourced and how to be farmers for the day. Moore talked about an agricultural education opportunity that was considered at Calvert County high schools. The county had plans to use Curriculum of Agricultural Science Education (CASE) at Calvert Technology Academy (CTA), but the county ended up dropping the idea due to the lack of ag teachers. Moore believes passionately in the continuing need for agricultural education, and she points to the lack of agricultural teachers in the state and students in the agricultural education major at the university as evidence that the state needs more commitment to providing agricultural education. The College of Agriculture and Natural Resources aims to address this statewide need; the Agricultural Science and Technology major is updating the Agricultural Education track and developing new pathways for students interested in agricultural education, and the IAA’s Leadership and Communication track offers foundational skills for ag ed professionals. As Moore points out, though, agriculture-related politics and funding are always tricky, and people in public roles—such as that of Miss Maryland Agriculture—will have to continue to advocate for agriculture at all levels of the curriculum.
Since Moore focused on the politics that govern educational spending, it’s important to note how the political importance of Miss Maryland Agriculture has changed—today, the role of a Miss includes helping to change perceptions of farmers and farming. The IAA’s Director, Glori Hyman, sees plenty of differences as she remembers her own time spent as a contestant in the Miss Baltimore County Farm Bureau contest during the late 70s. She remarks, “Growing up on the farm, females provided labor. We weren’t included in strategic planning, business aspects or even learning how things grew. We were there to harvest, we were there to clean, we were there to pack, and we were strictly there as unskilled laborers. But like so many things, it takes generations for perceptions to change. And although many farms are run actually by husbands and wives—families—the men are typically seen as the farmer and the decision-maker.”
Mary Amoss, Coordinator for the Miss Maryland Agriculture Program, agrees; she reports that in the past, even though women were farming, they weren’t supposed to speak up and say they were doing a “man’s job.” Throughout history, Hyman says, aging farmers laid the groundwork and the farm went from one patriarch to another…and the women were completely left out. But times have changed—as Amoss points out, women now make up 40 percent of the agriculture industry—and Miss Maryland Agriculture has changed, too, emphasizing both personal and professional growth. Amoss believes this organization brings women together to understand all aspects of agriculture and builds leaders for the future.
“We live agriculture everyday… Women have a very important role in promoting this (agriculture) to others. Their knowledge, their skills—they can do just about anything,” says Amoss. Her comments would apply in any industry; today it is important for women to be leaders, to take up space and fill a void, to have their voices heard, and to represent women that are like them, so that future young women know that they have the same and bigger opportunities in their future.
Rebecka Jones, student services coordinator for the IAA, says that representation is important—and being Miss Calvert County Farm Bureau 2015 gave her the opportunity to be part of something bigger than herself. “While agriculture doesn’t seem like a huge thing to many people,” she says, “agriculture is Maryland’s number one industry. Having young women representing something that is male-dominated is huge, and I think the program has a lot to say for the agriculture community.” Jones’s family is one of the few black farming families in Calvert County, and her reign gave face to a person of color representing agriculture, uncommon in her county and the state.
Each woman who participates in Miss Maryland Agriculture is a step toward progressive ideas about women in agriculture and other industries as well. Amoss cited the iconic 1930 painting American Gothic by Grant Wood, of the man in overalls holding a three-prong pitchfork and the woman standing slightly behind him and to his right on their farm. This portrait was a common representation of farm life for many generations. But Miss Maryland Agriculture encourages women in agriculture to step to the front and be the leaders themselves. As Amoss says, “We left crowns and gowns for business suits. This is not a beauty pageant.”
