Ag Communications | Nebraska Agricultural Education Career Development Events

Purpose

The Agricultural Communications CDE gives students the basic communication skills needed for careers in agricultural communication. Public communication about agricultural products, practices, and policies is essential to the future of agriculture, and students who can use a variety of media to help the public understand agricultural issues have a bright future in the job market.

What students do: Any school may enter the online pre-qualifier in February, and the top 10 teams advance to the state finals. Finalist teams of four build a communication plan for a client, including a feature story, a magazine layout, a broadcast piece, and a social media plan, and present it to judges. Each student also completes an editing exercise and a communications quiz.

2026 Pre-Qualifying Event Process and Timeline (updated for 2027 soon)

A pre-qualifying event is open to ALL schools in Nebraska, held via Zoom in mid-January. The Top 10 teams from the pre-qualifying event will be invited to the state finals and submit a full Communication Plan with all associated deliverables. For full details of the change in format, see “Section 8. Event Format” in the downloadable rules/handbook below.

Registration Open from December 1, 2025 - January 9th, 2026
Proctor Registration and Pre-Qualifying Date Selection due January 16
Pre-Qualifying Round Options:
- Wednesday, January 21, 9:00 - 10:30 CST - First Zoom Session
- Thursday, January 22, 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. CST - Second Zoom Session
Top 10 Teams notified by Friday, January 30, and schedule updated
Ag Communications Plans and Deliverables due Friday, March 6 via Google Form
Ag Communications CDE State Finals on Wednesday, March 25, in Lincoln