Since 2011, the NCC Education Foundation has received a CHS Foundation Cooperative Education Grant to present a Co-ops 101 program to Nebraska’s ag classes at the community colleges and universities. The one-hour long presentation focuses on the cooperative business model and provides an update on the current state of cooperatives in Nebraska. During the program, staff provides students with an in-depth look at how the cooperative business model functions. In addition, students hear from a local cooperative CEO who provides information regarding current cooperative issues as well as employment trends in agribusinesses.

We have been extremely pleased with the success of the program. The current instructors at the community colleges have embraced the program and are using it each spring/fall semester with some offering it to multiple classes.  In addition, several urban high schools have asked us to provide presentations as well.  Since its inception in the 2011/12 academic year and through the 2023/24 academic year, we have provided presentations to 166 classes for over 3,000  students/instructors.