ABOVE: Stephanie Wohlhuter, an ag teacher at MCW, has been recognized as a 2026 Outstanding Agriculture Educator of the Year. Submitted photo.

SHERBURN – Martin County West (MCW) agriculture teacher Stephanie Wohlhuter, who has been at the school for 20 years, was chosen by the Minnesota Association of Agricultural Educators (MAAE) as its 2026 Outstanding Agriculture Educator of the Year.

Wohlhuter wasn’t originally interested in agriculture education, but she fell in love with it when she first entered an agricultural class as a ninth grader at MCW.

“My high school ag teacher, Kent Janssen, pushed me to try some things that I wasn’t very comfortable with, particularly speaking in public,” Wohlhuter said. “I gained some confidence, and I realized the FFA and ag classes were something that were pretty cool and good for me, so that’s how I first became interested in ag education. ”

After graduating from the University of Minnesota, Wohlhuter spent four years at the Agricultural and Food Sciences Academy in Vadnais Heights before starting her teaching journey at Martin County West. In her time at MCW, Wohlhuter said being an educator has changed, and that is the great thing about it.

“Nothing ever stays quite the same,” she said. “I think it’s easy to stay engaged because things change and things are different. That might also be the most difficult part too though. Content is constantly changing, the kids are constantly changing, rules and policies are changing.”

Within that, Wohlhuter said she has been able to meet those changes and continue improving as an educator by always looking for something new and different to try.

“Seeing kids’ eyes light up when we do a lab for the first time that we haven’t done before,” she said. “It’s fun. They get to do something different, and so I think the reward for me is seeing the reaction of kids when we continuously try to find different things. Our community is super supportive, so when we try something new, and it goes over well, the positive feedback from the community is a driving force as well.”

This year in particular, Wohlhuter said it was one of MCW’s strongest years post-COVID.

“Getting kids back into being really engaged and pushing themselves at a high level,” she said. “We’ve had some personnel changes, and so me being a constant presence there, that falls on me to help find somebody and help train and bring new people in, and show them the way we do things. That change has been a big part of the past year, too.”

The MAAE Teacher of the Year award has been a way for Wohlhuter and other area teachers to lift up and reward success in the past.

“I’ve watched colleagues be nominated and selected for it, very deserving people,” she said. “It’s definitely an honor to be selected for it this year. I was nominated by the teachers in our region. It advances, and you get to fill out a nice long application and send in supporting materials, and then it’s judged at the state level.”

Being selected as the nominee for the Southwest Minnesota FFA region is high praise already, as Wohlhuter was voted on by her peers as the best.

“That’s the part that means a lot, because they see what we do,” she said. “They see our kids come to events, and the level of preparation they have. It’s a big honor to have people I work with every single year recognize that I should be nominated for it.”

When she found out she had been selected as the 2026 Outstanding Agriculture Educator of the Year, Wohlhuter said it made her proud.

“I’m a fairly humble person, and I don’t accept compliments very well,” she said. “It’s been a time where I’ve had to smile and say thank you and appreciate the fact that people have recognized the hard work that I’ve put in the last 24 years as an educator.”

As the train keeps rolling, and with this award in her back pocket, Wohlhuter said she is looking to continue giving kids the best possible ag education she can provide.

“I’m passionate about the agriculture industry,” she said. “I want kids to be as well, but if they’re not, I think we can help prepare them with some pretty strong life skills and leadership skills that will serve them no matter where they go.”

Wohlhuter will receive her award at the annual MAAE Banquet on July 9 in St. Cloud.