Lisa McNamara, who retired in 2024 as Octorara Area School District's director of Career and Technical Education (CTE), recently received the Duncan Allison Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award for her service to agriculture education.

She was presented the award by AgConnect, a public-private partnership that supports farmers and agricultural businesses and promotes the value of farming in Chester County. AgConnect also presented the Farmer of the Year Award to Bob and Ryan Rohrer of Rob-Roy Farm in Nottingham.

The awards were given out in December during a special ceremony held at Octorara Junior-Senior High School. Among those in attendance were Chester County Commissioners Josh Maxwell, Marian Moskowitz and Eric Roe; AgConnect executive advisory committee members; Octorara staff members; and guests.

For McNamara, who now lives in Ocean City, Md., it was her first visit back to Octorara after retiring. "Culinary arts students made an impressive lunch for us. All the commissioners were there. It was an absolutely wonderful event," said McNamara, noting that she was nominated for the award by Penn State Extension educator Jodi Gauker. "I was pleasantly surprised, honored and humbled."

McNamara started as an instructional support teacher for the school district and also served as principal of the Octorara Primary Learning Center. She then transferred to serve as the Octorara Area School District's kindergarten through 12th grade program administrator and CTE program director. In addition to agriculture, CTE programs prepare students for careers in business, woodworking, engineering, childhood education, graphic design and illustration, culinary, law enforcement, firefighting, emergency medical services, computer technology, animal and plant science, engine repair and more.

"I decided to change my career and went to the high school and built all the technical education programs there for the last nine or 10 years. It was quite fun, and that's where I ended my career," McNamara stated. "We started off with eight programs and ended with 12. We had over 250 kids in the program by the time I left. It was under 100 before. It was a great experience, and agriculture was a big part of it."

McNamara said that through the programs, students learn about the many career opportunities that revolve around agriculture. "My biggest goal was to promote agriculture," she said. "We are a rural community surrounded by farmland, and the students, community and the teachers need to know that agriculture is not just about farming. It has every industry within it. You have to be a businessman, have marketing (skills) and be a soil scientist. You have to know manufacturing."

"Agriculture and CTE programs are vital pathways that open incredible opportunities for our students, many of whom don't come from agricultural backgrounds," she added.

Additionally, McNamara expanded the Octorara Agriculture, Business, Environmental Science and Technology (OABEST) Expo, growing it from a small event to a community-wide celebration. "The purpose of OABEST was to promote agriculture, and every year I continued that and had someone from the agriculture industry speak," she noted. "(OABEST) got built up to include our other programs, but agriculture was still the focus."

"(During my career), I worked hard to promote and change mindsets about agriculture," she added.

Bob and Ryan Rohrer, the father and son team who operate Rob-Roy Farm, were honored for their decades-long commitment to sustainable farming and land stewardship. Bob has farmed in Chester County since 1952, taking over Rob-Roy Farm in 1966. Over the years, the farm transitioned from hog production to focus on row crops, including corn, soybeans, wheat, barley and sorghum. The Rohrers utilize conservation practices, planting cover crops on every acre to improve soil health, water retention and weed suppression.

Beyond their farm, the Rohrers are active in their community, volunteering with Chester County 4-H programs and advocating for agriculture through the Chester Delaware County Farm Bureau. "Farming has been my life - faith, family and farming," Bob stated when accepting the award. "It's humbling to be chosen, especially when I know so many other deserving farmers in Chester County."

For more information about AgConnect and to view a video from the awards program, visit http://www.go-agconnect.org.