CEDAR SPRINGS, Mich. — In some ways, Brent Willett is like a lot of other teachers.
"An apple, a plum and some peaches I think," he told FOX 17, referring to the items sitting on his desk inside classroom 210 at Cedar Springs High School.
While he might be feeding into the educator stereotype, the fruits of his labor go beyond his classroom snack.
“I just want kids to know where their food comes from, and how they can take that and things they do in class every day and bring it home and and back to their daily life," said Mr. Willett.
This is his fifth year as Cedar Springs High School's Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources educator.
“I love it," Mr. Willett said. "I love being here every day. Every day is a different adventure.”
Mr. Willett said growing up on a family farm in the area truly planted the seed for his future.
“At one point, I was like, 'Well, I'll go be a youth pastor.' Then I was like, 'Well, I really liked that farming and the horticulture aspects and the agriculture aspect,'" he said. "When I realized, 'Hey, you can join those two things together,' this is where it led me.”
On top of leading the school's program, of which there are more than 140 at different high schools in the state, Mr. Willett also acts as an advisor to Future Farmers of America, or FFA, which is the student leadership organization attached to the program.
Eli Klynemberg, the FFA President at Cedar Springs, and a student of Mr. Willett all four years of high school, said, “The saying is, 'If you can't do, teach. But Willett can do and he chooses to teach, so it's inspiring.”
Mr. Willett has inspired more than just the students.
In mid-January, he was named the 2023 Michigan Horticulture Teacher's Association Teacher of the Year.
“I guess the initial reaction was like, 'Hurray! Finally!' kind of a thing," he said. "But it's a nice recognition of the things that we're already doing here every day.”
The award came as no surprise to one of his former students, Taryn Troupe, who now works in the field at the Cedar Springs Feed Mill, and occasionally comes back to help out in Mr. Willett's classroom as an assistant FFA advisor.
“He was just always really in-depth," Troupe said. "He did a lot of hands-on learning, which I think helps a lot of kids nowadays. We did a lot of stuff outside, and we were learning new things while we were outside.”
As a former student at the school himself, Mr. Willett said this recognition stems from how it all started.
“Full circle moment back to Cedar Springs," he said. "I love giving back to the community and helping the community out as well.”
Follow FOX 17: Facebook - X (formerly Twitter) - Instagram - YouTube
