Secondary Education, Two-Year Postsecondary Education, and Agriculture in the K-12 Classroom Challenge Grants Program

The purpose of the SPECA program is to award grants to; enhance curricula in agricultural education, increase faculty teaching competencies, interest young people in pursuing higher education in order to prepare for scientific and professional careers in the food and agricultural sciences, promote the incorporation of agriscience and agribusiness subject matter into other instructional programs, particularly classes in science, business, and consumer education, facilitate joint initiatives by the grant recipient with other secondary schools, institutions of higher education that award an associate degree, and institutions of higher education that award a bachelor's degree to maximize the development and use of resources, such as faculty, facilities, and equipment, to improve agriscience and agribusiness education, support other initiatives designed to meet local, State, regional, or national needs related to promoting excellence in agriscience and agribusiness education; and support current agriculture in the classroom programs for grades K–12.