{"id":24191,"date":"2025-11-13T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T03:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/?p=24191"},"modified":"2025-09-29T18:30:26","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T18:30:26","slug":"kim-miller-parker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/","title":{"rendered":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>At Coffee County Central High School in Manchester, students are discovering more than just animal care \u2014 they\u2019re discovering themselves. Behind that transformation is Kim Miller Parker, a career and technical education (CTE) advisor whose 23-year career has been devoted to helping young people grow confident, capable, and community-minded through agricultural education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the classroom \u2014 and sometimes even in the barns and fields \u2014 she teaches small and large animal care and veterinary science to high school students, some of whom have never been around animals at all.<strong> <\/strong>While many schools focus on core academics, Miller Parker\u2019s classroom teaches technical, professional, and life skills that are vital but often overlooked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI want them to have the self-confidence to pursue what they want,\u201d she said. \u201cI want them to be able to speak in public, honor responsibility, and explore their options instead of being boxed in by the time they\u2019re in eighth grade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Through public speaking competitions, many hosted by reputable organizations such as the National FFA Organization (FFA), her students have won national recognition. Leadership development is included in everything they do. Students attend school board meetings and farm bureau gatherings and even have the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., for leadership conferences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe do a lot of community service, too,\u201d she said. \u201cWe participate in FFA\u2019s Passing Literacy OnWard program, which promotes reading literacy and agricultural education for younger students. That helps our kids develop communication skills and connect with the next generation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For many students, Miller Parker\u2019s program is their first exposure to animals beyond household pets. Her courses in small and large animal care introduce students to everything from guinea pigs and chinchillas to dairy cows and show horses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe have students who come in never having stayed overnight away from home,\u201d she said. \u201cBy the time they\u2019ve been in the program, they\u2019re traveling, competing, and stepping into leadership roles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some students who don\u2019t have the space or resources to raise livestock are invited to join show teams organized by other students&#8217; families.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt gives those kids hands-on experience and teaches them what it really takes to care for another living being.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The progression is intentional. Most students start with small animals and gradually move up to more intensive responsibilities. By the time they reach the veterinary science track, they\u2019ve already logged two to three years of animal care experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe start with Latin terminology, injections, dosage calculations, and then move into how to interact with clients and what\u2019s legal and ethical for vet assistants,\u201d she explained. \u201cIt\u2019s a rigorous curriculum.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This year, Miller Parker\u2019s class is piloting a new program through Texas A&amp;M University that allows students to graduate with a Veterinary Assistant Certification. To qualify, students must complete 300 hours in the classroom and 225 hours of hands-on veterinary experience \u2014 either paid or unpaid \u2014 before taking the final certification exam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt gives them a solid entry point into the workforce right after high school,\u201d she said. \u201cFrom there, they can choose to pursue a two-year vet tech degree, go on to a program like the one at [University of Tennessee at Martin] that\u2019s similar to a nurse practitioner, or eventually attend vet school.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The multiple pathways are designed to meet students where they are and support them as far as they want to go. Some alumni have become veterinary technicians, teachers, insurance agents, and even government employees. Others work as seed representatives or extension agents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe ones who really dive in eventually build careers in the industry,\u201d she said proudly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What stands out most about Miller Parker\u2019s teaching philosophy is her deep commitment to personal growth. She realizes that it isn\u2019t just about teaching about the animals; she ultimately is teaching students how to navigate the world with courage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSome kids don\u2019t even know how to order food in a restaurant when they start here,\u201d she said. \u201cBut you take them on small day trips, encourage them to compete, and they blossom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of her students, once too shy to stay overnight away from home, went on to study abroad in Costa Rica and serve in the student government at Tennessee Tech. It\u2019s moments like that that remind her why she does this work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI want them to come back to their communities and be leaders,\u201d she said. \u201cWe have a lot of transplants here \u2014 people who move in and want to change things. But I want these kids to grow up respecting what\u2019s already been established here and contributing in ways that honor that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been doing this long enough now that I\u2019m starting to see the full circle,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s a good feeling.\u201d <strong>GN<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At Coffee County Central High School in Manchester, students are discovering more than just animal care \u2014 they\u2019re discovering themselves. Behind that transformation is Kim Miller Parker, a career and technical education (CTE) advisor whose 23-year career has been devoted to helping young people grow confident, capable, and community-minded through agricultural education. In the classroom [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":195,"featured_media":24199,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At Coffee County Central High School in Manchester, students are discovering more than just animal care \u2014 they\u2019re discovering themselves. Behind that transformation is Kim Miller Parker, a career and technical education (CTE) advisor whose 23-year career has been devoted to helping young people grow confident, capable, and community-minded through agricultural education. In the classroom [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Manchester, TN Good News Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1706\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Felicia Dilbert\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Felicia Dilbert\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Felicia Dilbert\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea\"},\"headline\":\"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":803,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/\",\"name\":\"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1706,\"caption\":\"Veterinarian in medical gown and young man taking care about the baby goat standing indoors in the barn. Sheep breeder with veterinary in shed using digital tablet. Smart farm.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/kim-miller-parker\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/\",\"name\":\"Manchester, TN Good News Exchange\",\"description\":\"Celebrating Good News, Big or Small in Manchester, TN\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea\",\"name\":\"Felicia Dilbert\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Felicia Dilbert\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/manchester\\\/author\\\/fdilbert\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange","og_description":"At Coffee County Central High School in Manchester, students are discovering more than just animal care \u2014 they\u2019re discovering themselves. Behind that transformation is Kim Miller Parker, a career and technical education (CTE) advisor whose 23-year career has been devoted to helping young people grow confident, capable, and community-minded through agricultural education. In the classroom [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/","og_site_name":"Manchester, TN Good News Exchange","article_published_time":"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1706,"url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Felicia Dilbert","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Felicia Dilbert","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/"},"author":{"name":"Felicia Dilbert","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/#\/schema\/person\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea"},"headline":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future","datePublished":"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/"},"wordCount":803,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg","articleSection":["Stories"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/","url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/","name":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future - Manchester, TN Good News Exchange","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-11-13T03:00:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/#\/schema\/person\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/11\/AdobeStock_271436017-scaled.jpeg","width":2560,"height":1706,"caption":"Veterinarian in medical gown and young man taking care about the baby goat standing indoors in the barn. Sheep breeder with veterinary in shed using digital tablet. Smart farm."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/kim-miller-parker\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Kim Miller Parker: Planting seeds for the future"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/#website","url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/","name":"Manchester, TN Good News Exchange","description":"Celebrating Good News, Big or Small in Manchester, TN","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/#\/schema\/person\/d846ef7279b2f8b140015b9ad4a4fcea","name":"Felicia Dilbert","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1620852b13deedd85d712f68ed1d15014c19f313471b552c1fa1cc2ddcf6e56c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Felicia Dilbert"},"url":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/author\/fdilbert\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/195"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24191"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24191\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24194,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24191\/revisions\/24194"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/manchester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}