About

Joy Morgan, EdD, is an Associate Professor and the Director of the North Carolina Agricultural Leadership Development Program within the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences at North Carolina State University. She grew up on a small beef cattle and tobacco farm in Oxford, North Carolina, and was actively involved in 4-H and FFA during her youth. Her early interest in agricultural education was sparked by participation in a Phi Delta Kappa future teacher camp and the Institute for Future Agricultural Leaders at NC State. She earned her degrees in Agricultural Education with a minor in Animal Science from NC State University, followed by a Master's degree in Agricultural Education and a Doctorate in Agricultural and Extension Education from the same institution. Dr. Morgan teaches undergraduate and graduate courses related to agricultural education, focusing on diverse learners, instructional strategies, and assessment methods. Her research and professional interests include enhancing project-based learning in agriculture, diversity and inclusion in agricultural education, and leadership development. She has received numerous awards, including the 2022 North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) Educator Award and the 2020 USDA Early Career Teacher Award. Dr. Morgan is actively involved in programs aimed at leadership development, curriculum enhancement, and engaging agricultural educators, with grants supporting initiatives like the Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE) Institute and leadership coaching for emerging leaders in agriculture.

Research topics

• Sociology
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Pedagogy
• Social psychology
• Medicine
• Geography
• Medical education

Selected publications

• Unearthing Agricultural Legacies: Fannie Lou Hamer - Planting Roots for Black Agricultural Success Through the Freedom Farm Cooperative

  Journal of Agricultural Education · 2025-10-21

  articleOpen access

  This historical research study examines the creation and purpose of the Freedom Farm Cooperative through the lived experiences of its founder, Fannie Lou Hamer. The objectives include describing who Fannie Lou Hamer was, the purpose of the Freedom Farm Cooperative, and how Fannie and the Freedom Farm initiative inspired African American contributions to agriculture. The research employs critical race theory to explore both historical and contemporary challenges faced by marginalized communities in agriculture, especially regarding how systemic racism continues to impact agricultural engagement, education, and extension programming. Born into the oppressive sharecropping system in the Mississippi Delta, Fannie’s life was marked by racial injustice, poverty, and food insecurity. These hardships fueled her drive to achieve Black self-sufficiency and empowerment, separate from the unjust systems impacting her and her community. The Freedom Farm Cooperative was created as a response to these inequities, aiming to nurture a Black-led community that could meet its own needs for food, employment, education, housing, and financial support. In addition to teaching members essential skills for self-sustainability, Mrs. Hamer used this initiative to empower her community to exercise political and social freedoms as well. Through the story of the Freedom Farm Cooperative, this study seeks to inspire transformative economic and social change, offering lessons for modern extension and education efforts to increase minority participation in agriculture.

  PublisherDOI

• Home demonstration work in North Carolina: Leading the way for rural women

  Journal of Agricultural Education · 2023-06-30

  articleOpen access

  Canning and home demonstration clubs played an important role in improving agriculture and home life shortly after the turn of the 20th century. Organized in local communities, these clubs for young girls and their mothers provided the opportunity for females to engage in experiential learning through the growth and canning of vegetables. Club work and activities allowed the involved individuals to learn important home life concepts including incorporating more nutritious meals, record keeping, maintaining the family garden, and other duties surrounding the home. In addition, clubs promoted cooperation among various groups, fostered friendships, and provided entrepreneurial opportunities for farm women. Movements such as these increased the demand for agricultural and extension education and many of the strategies developed through these clubs can be implemented in both formal and non-formal education today.

  PublisherDOI

• Influencing the Next Agriculturalists: Impacts of Study Abroad Experiences in Agricultural Education Classrooms

  Career and Technical Education Research · 2023 · 1 citations

  • Sociology
  • Political Science
  • Pedagogy

  With the increasing globalization of companies and the workforce, specifically within the agricultural industry, educators seek to prepare workers with technical and soft skills that will allow employability in multicultural environments. Using the lens of Transformative Learning Theory and Self Determination Theory, we examined how a study abroad experience as an undergraduate student impacted agricultural educators′ motivation to incorporate global awareness into their curricula. A basic qualitative approach guided the study with twelve current agricultural educators to derive meaning and understanding from their experiences. Semi-structured interviews yielded the emergence of six themes: Power of Storytelling, Broadened Perspective, Influence of People, 21st Century Skills, Reflection and Application, and Food and Agriculture as a Universal Language. “A-ha” moments during their study abroad gave teachers the initial reflection leading to the need to apply international agriculture concepts within their curriculum. Today, these current teachers desire to lead their own students through those “a-ha” moments while also encouraging them to participate in a study abroad experience just as they were influenced to participate. Further, through their exposure to diverse perspectives, these teachers see the value in teaching students from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

  PublisherDOI

• Strategies for Diversity & Inclusion

  NACTA Journal · 2023

  • Political Science
  • Sociology
  • Psychology

  The diversity of undergraduate students on college campuses across the country is increasing (Pope et al., 2014). In conjunction with this increase in diversity has been a rise in negative responses to that diversity, which in turn, causes decreased student satisfaction in the campus experience for those diverse student populations (Evans & D'Augelli, 1996; Evans & Rankin, 1998; Huntt et al., 2012; Seymour & Hewitt, 1997; Tonso, 1999). This increase in student diversity and decrease in student satisfaction has challenged universities to not only to support students, but also to create programs, design policies and procedures, and implement strategies and interventions that are culturally sensitive. The purpose of this case study is to provide insight into HBCU College of Agriculture (CoA) faculty experiences with diversity with a particular focus on why those HBCU CoA faculty chose to become multiculturally competent or not.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Aligning Instruction with Extension Professional Competencies for an Enhanced Undergraduate Extension Education Minor

  Journal of Human Sciences and Extension · 2022-12-01

  articleOpen access

  This paper reports on a three-year initiative to enhance the undergraduate Extension Education minor at a state land-grant university. Specific initiatives to improve the undergraduate Extension Education minor curriculum involved (a) revising the Extension Education minor due to varied curriculum and faculty changes and (b) aligning eight Extension Education courses’ units of study with Extension professional competency domains. The described processes helped understand the Extension Education curriculum by mapping competency domains and showing which domains were and were not taught in the eight courses. A key recommendation is to incorporate the alignment of Extension Education curriculum and Extension professional competencies into the Extension summer internship program, among other uses. Furthermore, it is recommended that faculty engage in a similar effort to map college curricula to professional competencies to ensure that academic minors have a clear purpose in preparing students for careers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Motivations and Challenges of Underrepresented Students Enrolled in Post-Secondary Agricultural Education Program: Community through Diversity

  Journal of Agricultural Education · 2021-09-30 · 5 citations

  articleOpen access

  This study used an exploratory case study approach to explore the motivations and challenges of underrepresented students enrolled in a post-secondary agricultural education degree program. The study’s sample consisted of four agricultural education undergraduate students who self-identified as members of an underrepresented group (URG) categorized as: 1) ethnic minority, 2) LGBTQ+, 3) low income, and/or 4) first generation college student. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data with thematic content analysis to determine the themes present regarding motivations for enrolling and perceptions of challenges among participants. Motivation themes included students involved in high school agricultural education programs, positive influence of adults, fun and interesting agricultural content, community feeling, and exposure to teaching experience. Perceptions of challenges for participants were financial burden, cross-race effect, possible discrimination, and isolation. This study focused on underrepresented groups, therefore, generalizability across all students enrolled in agricultural education is not possible. However, this study does provide valuable insight into the perspectives of underrepresented students and a voice for these students to hopefully invoke change in policies, structures, and activities in agricultural education programs locally and nationally.

  PublisherDOI

• Are Agriculture Teachers Teaching to the Test? The Use of Test Item Banks in North Carolina Agricultural Education Classrooms

  Career and Technical Education Research · 2018-12-01

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Myocardial Infarction and Left Ventricular Hypertrophy Seen on an Infant's Electrocardiogram

  The American Journal of Cardiology · 2015-04-15 · 1 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• The School That Built a Nation

  University of Pittsburgh Digital Library · 2012-04-14

  bookOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  Publisher

• STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF THE VALUE OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN THEIR ACADEMIC DEVELOPMENT

  Acta Horticulturae · 2011-12-01 · 1 citations

  articleSenior author

  ISHS XXVIII International Horticultural Congress on Science and Horticulture for People (IHC2010): VI International Symposium on Horticultural Education, Research Training and Consultancy STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF THE VALUE OF FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN THEIR ACADEMIC DEVELOPMENT

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Suzanne Ferron

  8 shared

• Marion O’Reilly

  Oxfam

  7 shared

• Harriett C. Edwards

  North Carolina State University

  5 shared

• Jacklyn Bruce

  North Carolina State University

  5 shared

• Alyssa Rose Degreenia

  North Carolina State University

  4 shared

• Melissa R. Hendrickson

  North Central State College

  4 shared

• Katherine McKee

  Western Carolina University

  4 shared

• Wendy J. Warner

  3 shared

Awards & honors

• 2022 – North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (…
• 2020 – USDA Early Career Teacher Award
• 2018 – Global Community Academic Advising, Outstanding New A…
• 2018 – Honorary State FFA Degree, NC FFA Association
• 2018 – NC State University New Faculty Advisor Award