Dr. Ann DeLay
Professor
OFFICE: 10-236
PHONE: 756-7272
EMAIL: adelay@calpoly.edu
Dr. Ann M. De Lay was raised in Chowchilla, California. Her first exposure to agriculture was through her high school’s agriculture program and the FFA. As an active member of the Chowchilla FFA, she maintained SAEs in market hogs and agriculture business placement; served as an officer; and for her four years was a member of the parliamentary procedure team, the dairy cattle judging team, and was a prepared public speaker. She credits Kim Donaher and Steve Obad with fueling her interest in teaching agriculture as a career.
Dr. De Lay earned her Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Education from California State University, Fresno. As part of the credential requirements, she completed her student teaching at Sierra High School in Tollhouse and was immediately hired at Central High School in Fresno, one of the largest programs in the nation. She taught introduction to agriculture, floriculture, landscaping, and agriculture leadership. She also served as the FFA advisor and supervised dairy cattle and goat SAEs. Dr. De Lay completed a Master of Science in Agriculture at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
Following her secondary teaching experience, Dr. De Lay completed her PhD in Agricultural Education at the University of Florida. Go, Gators! Her dissertation addressed secondary agriculture teachers’ perceptions of collaborating with other teachers.
Dr. De Lay enthusiastically joined the Agricultural Education and Communication team at Cal Poly in 2008. Her responsibilities include teaching Ag Ed 438 – Instructional Processes in Agricultural Education, Ag Ed 536 – College Teaching, and AGC 426 – Presentation Methods in Agricultural Communications, as well as assisting with the supervision of teacher candidates. She is advisor to Cal Poly’s Young Farmers and Ranchers Collegiate Discussion Meet Team, co-advisor for Latinos in Agriculture and manages the department’s social media presence. Her research interests primarily surround (1) the recruitment, professional growth and retention of quality agriculture teachers, (2) the experiences of first generation students, and (3) the perspectives of underserved and underrepresented populations in agricultural education.