The Daily Statesman reports Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff, Mo., will begin offering a one year Precision Agriculture certificate in the spring of 2016.

New precision ag degree programs have been popping up across the country over the last couple of years. They include: Blue Mountain Community College (Pendleton, Ore.), Northland Technical College (Thief River Falls, Minn.), Clark State Community College (Springfield, Oh.), Lake Region State College — Dakota Precision Ag Center (Devils Lake, N.D.), Kirkwood Community College (Cedar Rapids, Ia.) and North Iowa Area Community College (Mason City, Ia.)

According to the report:

"Mike Barrett, project director at Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff, Mo., shared details of the new technical programs being offered at various TRC campuses, as well as some of the newer courses soon to be offered that are geared to making people employable in the Bootheel region.

"One course Barrett is anxious for is the newly approved Precision Agriculture program. 'That is a one year certificate program in Precision Agriculture,' he said. 'That covers driving a tractor using the guidance (GPS), and the GIS (geographic information systems).' That course will be available for spring, and he already has some students lining for it.

"When it comes to the Precision Ag program, Barrett is excited with the partnerships he has lined up for it, such as some of the industry where donations have been made.

'"We have the land and the equipment," he said. "We will be looking at working with the equipment, the GIS and the Ag industry software that is used in the field.'"

Read full story at DailyStatesman.com

For a full list of educational institutions offering precision ag degress, take a look at the Education section of our Precision Ag Technology Talent Training Network.