Sioux City, Iowa – Morningside University and the Sioux City Community School District have signed a Memorandum of Understanding creating a collaborative partnership that will allow agricultural education students in grades 9-12 who are participating in the Sioux City Career Academy’s Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Pathway to engage in more in-depth experiential learning opportunities beginning this fall.

“We are extremely excited to partner with the Morningside agriculture program, their students and faculty, and their state-of-the-art greenhouse facility,” said Katie Towler, Principal of the Sioux City Career Academy. “The Sioux City Career Academy exists to allow students the opportunity to explore career and college pathways while they are in high school. This partnership will provide insight into the agriculture industry that we cannot replicate in the classroom.”

A vital component of the agreement will be the completion of the new Morningside University Rosen Ag Center, which will provide state-of-the-art learning opportunities for both Morningside and Sioux City Career Academy students thanks to a generous gift from Tom Rosen ’70 and his family.

“The technology and equipment that the new Rosen Ag Center will offer allows both Morningside and Sioux City Career Academy students to get first-hand experience with agriculture, which will give those students a better sense of what a future career might look like,” said Dr. Tom Paulsen, head of the Regina Roth Applied Agricultural & Food Studies Department. “There are billions of people to feed in the world. The demand for talent in this industry is only going to grow, and this partnership and our new facility put us in an excellent position to help the next generation of agricultural and food studies professionals to launch their careers.”

Through the agreement, Morningside will expand the number of opportunities that students in the Sioux City Career Academy have to explore careers in agriculture; provide active learning experiences using the new Rosen Ag Center and other campus facilities; and help students develop leadership, financial, and other employability skills. The agreement will also set up a mentorship program between Morningside students and Sioux City Career Academy students, as well as offer Sioux City Career Academy students the potential to earn credits from Morningside while in high school.

The partnership will be active for the 2021-2022 academic year, which coincides with the expected completion of the new Rosen Ag Center. Individuals interested in learning more about the Morningside University Regina Roth Applied Agricultural & Food Studies program are encouraged to visit this link. More information about the Sioux City Career Academy is available here.