Introducing Mr. McCabe

 

Introducing Mr. Gage McCabe

January 30, 2024

Hey y'all! 

I am glad to introduce you to my blog and hopefully, you'll stick around and follow as my future career unfolds. I strive to connect students and people to the outdoors and peak their interest in environmental sciences while also getting them involved in all the opportunities that FFA provides. My education journey has just begun and over the next few months, I look forward to connecting with teachers and students as I find my stride into becoming the best teacher and adviser I can be.

I look forward to the highs and lows that come with this journey and ask that you follow along as I embark on this adventure as I share my thoughts, accomplishments, failures, and successes with you.

For starters, my name is Gage McCabe. I was born and raised in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and spent most of my younger years on a baseball field or ice rink. When I wasn't playing sports you could find me in the woods either fishing, hunting, or just exploring. My father was the big reason why I really fell in love with the outdoors and discovering all of the secrets that it holds. He taught me to slow down and just watch and by doing so you can see the outdoors come alive.

High School

I am an alumnus of the Manheim Central High School where I played hockey, baseball, shot competition rifle, and golfed. My FFA experience began during my freshman year of high school and after that first meeting I was hooked and I knew this was something I wanted to be a part of not just in high school, but in the future as well. Before high school, although I grew up in a very agriculture-based area, I was never really involved besides helping friends when they needed help on their farms. So, FFA was really my first big step into the realm of agriculture. During school, when I wasn't found on a field somewhere I was helping in the shop or in the greenhouse, and these were definitely where alot of my high points in high school came from. 

For our FFA chapter, I competed in the Environment and Natural Resources team and won states with my team my Junior year and got the opportunity to go and experience FFA nationals in Indianapolis. This experience was life-changing and I cannot wait to be able to take students there someday. Not only is it neat to meet other members from around the country, but it is also a great way to connect students to so many different schools and careers that are great for the agriculture community.

College

When senior year came around and I had to start looking for colleges to attend there were two that I knew that if I didn't get in either of them, the next steps were foggy. However, I was blessed to be able to become a student at Penn State and I can honestly say that day I got the acceptance letter, I don't think I could've been prouder of myself than right then. Becoming a Nittany Lion was one of the best things that has happened in my life. This school, the teachers, advisors, students, and community is one massive family that constantly supports you through the journey of college.

Up to this day, I have had many great opportunities in my life, but one of the most life-altering ones was the semester I spent studying at Shaver's Creek Environmental Center. The classes were based on Outdoor education and environmental Science Education, and the professors were amazing. We also spent the semester working on how to become a leader and work with a team and one of our big experiences was a 2 week trip up to the New England states where we visited many other environmental centers and youth camps. We got to speak to employees, counselors, and volunteers that spent time at these places. We were asked to partake in many different activities daily, and then at the end of the day, we would re-group and discuss why certain components of the day were so important and how we could not only use this day-to-day but also incorporate it into our classrooms and use it with our students. 

I can't believe time has flown by so fast! Only 3 semesters to go and I'll hopefully be walking into my own classroom where I get to inspire curiosity in my students and hopefully get them to feel as passionate about the content I am teaching them as I am about it. 

Thank you for joining me and I hope you're able to hold onto this fun and wild ride through my journey of learning how to become the best educator I can be for myself and my students.

Mr. McCabe