By Becky Leader
Sentinel Correspondent
news@putnamsentinel.com
LEIPSIC—
Leipsic High School’s Vocational Agriculture instructor, Don Barnhart,
has been recognized for the second time in as many months for the
numerous contributions he has made to his students and the community.
In
February, Barnhart, a 35-year teaching veteran who has spent his entire
career at Leipsic, was awarded District 4’s Golden Owl, which
acknowledges agricultural educators across Ohio who devote countless
hours, and often their own resources, to positively influence the lives
of their students.
On March 9, he received the Ohio Association of
Agricultural Educators’ (OAAE) 2023 Outstanding Agricultural Education
Teacher Award. Barnhart was nominated for the distinction by his
contemporaries. He was also one of four finalists for the OAAE
Outstanding Teacher Mentor Award.
Barnhart will now vie for the
title of National Outstanding Agricultural Education Teacher, an honor
that will be presented during the National Association of Agricultural
Educators’ Convention in Phoenix at the end of November.
“When
looking at all the agricultural teachers from across Ohio who were
nominated, I feel honored to be associated with this caliber of
teachers,” Barnhart said.
“As educators, we all know it is not
about the awards and accolades; it is about the students and their
success,” he declared. “This is the icing on top of the cake to be
recognized and appreciated.”
Barnhart will retire from teaching at the end of this school year.