The Department of Agriculture at Southern Arkansas University proudly announces the addition of Dr. Trent Wells to its faculty, said Dr. Jeffry Miller, chair of the department. Wells will serve as an assistant professor of Agricultural Education.
“We are excited to have Dr. Wells joining the Agriculture faculty of SAU,” said Miller. “He will continue SAU’s legacy of preparing and encouraging students to become agriculture educators.”
Originally from Jasper, Alabama, Wells earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Education at Iowa State University in August 2019. He earned his MS in Agricultural Education from Iowa State in 2014 and his BS in Agriscience Education from Auburn University in 2012.
Prior to joining the faculty at SAU, he was a school-based agricultural education teacher in Fayette, Alabama, for three years. He focuses on agricultural teacher preparation and agricultural mechanics education. His research foci are situated around teaching and learning in agricultural education laboratory settings and simulator technology applications in agricultural education.
“I was an active agricultural student and FFA member when I was in high school,” Wells said. “During those experiences, I discovered that I wanted to become an agricultural education teacher at the high school level.” He transferred to Auburn University after completing his first two years at Bevill State Community College in Jasper.
While working on his MS degree, he taught agriculture in two different high schools in western Alabama, from 2013-2016. During his time at Iowa State, he taught agricultural mechanics coursework and worked in a variety of ways to help improve agricultural education in Iowa.
“Based on my experiences as a former high school teacher and my previous role at Iowa State University, I place a high value on effective teaching and getting to know my students,” Wells said. “I seek to help them become the highest quality professionals. Being a new faculty member at SAU, I appreciate this institution’s commitment to ensuring exceptional experiences.”
Wells was attracted to serve the citizens of Arkansas “at a teaching-focused institution,” and is glad to have found a home at SAU. “I look forward to serving on the faculty here for years to come. My family loves the area and I want them to become as engaged in and around SAU as I plan to be.”
