FINAL EXAM BREAKFAST
A TRADITION FOR KC AG TEACHER
OVERTON, TX --- A full moon is still high in the western sky on this crisp mid-December morn as Kilgore College agriculture
instructor Bob Young prepares a hearty breakfast of bacon, sausage, eggs, and pancakes for his poultry science class, which,
within the hour will be taking their final exam at the college farm here.
The students file in brushing hair, some yawning
from the obvious loss of sleep as they grab plates and head through the buffet line.
Not a single student is missing on this important day, and the appetites vary widely.
Most of the boys eat heartily while the girls are more judgmental in their portion selections. However, no one turns down the meat offerings and the syrup bottle empties quickly. The room suddenly becomes quieter as munching takes the place
of idle chatter. Several students of both genders return for a second helping,
of which there are ample proportions remaining. Young prefers that none of his
students leave the table hungry, especially when a difficult final exam is next on the agenda.
Is
it a rarity to see a college instructor cooking an early morning breakfast for their class?
Probably. But it is a tradition for Young who has been following the practice
for the past six years. On this day, 23 students were treated prior to taking
their exam.
“This
is something I enjoy doing and I think the kids relish,” said Young. “A
lot of college students really don’t eat a proper breakfast, so this is kind of special to them. And I get a lot of help in the cooking process.”
Long
before most of the students filed in, Young was getting able assistance from Sulphur Bluff sophomore Jaci Jaggers,
president of the award-winning KC Agriculture Club. Jaggers scrambled the eggs
and flipped the pancakes, generously laced with pecan chunks, thus freeing Young to fry up heaping mounds of thick country
bacon and sausage patties.
“This group of agriculture students is a very
cohesive unit,” Young continued. “They work together and study together. They interact together. When the chips
are down, they really help each other out. I guess rural and farm kids are like
that all across the country. That’s why I’m so proud of these youngsters;
they’re special and are so appreciative when you do anything for them, like cooking their breakfast. And some of them can eat pretty good, too.”
Most of these students had only last week completed
work on the Ag Club’s Christmas floats, which participated in parades at Arp, Overton, Kilgore, and Henderson. Many of them were participants in the department’s livestock show team and had
been following a rigid schedule for feeding and exercising the show animals. Some
club members had been meeting to schedule area nursing home visits during the Christmas holidays. All in all, its been a busy time for these active students.
Young’s culinary tactics apparently worked
well with his class. Nearly one-half of the students made an “A”
on the exam, even without bonus points. Now here’s a breakfast tradition
a lot more teachers ought to look into.
(Article published locally and provided by writer, Ralph Ward Jr.)
