Kelsey Klont
Contributing Writer

(Photo by Kelsey Klont/TCJ – Kirk Forsyth returns to CHS as Ag teachers and FFA Advisor.)

Charlotte High School’s new agriculture teacher, Kirk Forsyth, is excited to be back home at his own high school.

Kirk Forsyth was originally raised in Normal, Illinois. His passion for agriculture allowed him to become a senior member of his 4H club where his projects included gardening, rabbits, and woodworking. He was also involved in their Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter. A lot of his time was spent with his friends weeding the bean and corn fields for the local farmers.

His junior year of high school his family moved to Charlotte to be closer to his grandparents. Forsyth became involved in the Charlotte FFA chapter later on in his senior year, and his passion only further grew and established lifelong friendships with the fellow members.

After moving, Forsyth’s father had an established career in agricultural sales and his mother became a teacher at St. Mary School in Charlotte. Following graduation from Charlotte High School, Forsyth attended Michigan State University where he received a teaching degree that nearly married both of his parents’ careers together. But at that time, he did not get a teaching certificate, so he went to work in agriculture sales. Forsyth worked at Agri-Sales/ADM where he served the surrounding areas.

While Forsyth returned to college to earn his teaching certificate in the summer of 2009, he was a substitute teacher at the Sanilac Career Center. He reconnected with Mr. Sollman, his agriculture teacher from Charlotte his senior year, who would later help him get his foot in the door with future teaching jobs. Forsyth worked as a biology teacher and FFA Advisor at North Huron Schools from the fall of 2009 until the spring of 2012. For the past few years, he taught at Deckerville as an agriculture, biology, and seventh grade science teacher since the fall of 2020 until this past fall, when he saw the posting about the Charlotte teaching position on the Michigan State University College of Agriculture & Natural Resource Job Postings website.
As an FFA Advisor, Forsyth felt it was important that his botany classes be considered associated with FFA, which many schools do not see. That is one of the many reasons why he took this position back at his own high school.
Being one of the FFA advisors at Charlotte, Forsyth says, “I do not have to change anything. My job is only to advise, observe, and see where we can improve as well as help them with new ideas to explore.” As a past member of the Charlotte FFA Chapter, I can attest that it is favorable to know an advisor does not foresee any changes, doing what is asked of an advisor to ‘advise from time to time as the need arises.’

Upon returning to Charlotte, Forsyth told me that thus far the staff and students have been very welcoming, also saying, “It feels as though I almost did not leave.” His hope for coming back to Charlotte is to get back in touch and reestablish some old connections. From meeting with Mr. Forsyth I can say we are all glad to have him back in Charlotte!