By Sara Moyers
Sept. 9, 2026
Bryan Garton, senior associate dean and director of academic programs in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at the University of Missouri, recently received the National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE) Lifetime Achievement Award. The award recognizes agricultural educators for visionary leadership, career dedication and advocacy.
Garton has dedicated more than 40 years to advancing agricultural education through teaching, research, leadership and service. His career began as a secondary agricultural education instructor and FFA advisor in Missouri, where he successfully doubled program enrollment during the 1980s farm crisis by redesigning curriculum, strengthening community partnerships and demonstrating the value of agricultural education to students and families.
After earning his doctorate from The Ohio State University, Garton joined the Mizzou faculty in 1993, and built an outstanding career as an educator, scholar and administrator.
His research has advanced evidence-based teaching practices, strengthened teacher preparation and mentoring and improved student learning and engagement.
As a senior academic leader in CAFNR, Garton has helped achieve record student retention and graduation rates, expanded scholarship support, enhanced experiential learning for students and maintained exceptional career placement outcomes.
He has also secured more than $1.18 million in competitive funding to strengthen professional development for agricultural educators and received many of the academic field’s highest honors, including Mizzou’s William T. Kemper Fellowship for Excellence in Teaching.
Read more from the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources
