Before Isabel D’Aquisto became Oregon’s FFA state president, she was a high school senior dreaming of a Christian university, close to home, that would further equip her goal of becoming an advocate for the agriculture industry. “I prayed a lot about it,” she said. “But at the time, it seemed so unrealistic.”

A still undecided high school senior, her appointment as FFA president allowed her an extra year to decide her next step. “It was God’s perfect timing,” she said. “If I hadn’t taken that gap year, I wouldn’t have ended up coming to Corban.”

Isabel was introduced to Corban’s new program shortly after—the only ag science program at a Christian university on the West Coast. After visiting the campus with her family, she was sold. “I didn’t pass a single person that didn’t smile and wave at me and my family,” she remembers.

As a key member of the program’s inaugural class, Isabel is ready to dig into Corban’s culture, community, and biblically-focused academics. “I’m excited to deepen my knowledge about the industry so that I can be a better advocate while prepping for my future career where I will hopefully be able to teach and inform students to advocate for the agricultural industry,” she said.

For Isabel, the importance of ag education is clear. “It’s America’s biggest industry and only 2% of the population is directly involved,” she said. “But every American is involved if they eat food every morning, put clothes on, drive a car, put on make-up. It’s all because of the agricultural industry.”

She sees the value of informing the public and helping to educate lawmakers and legislators on the importance of policies that take into account the needs of farmers and ranchers. “I’m excited to be a part of this new program and learn how to support farmers so that they can continue to support all of us.”