North Carolina Farm Bureau is an insurance company that offers auto, home, business, farm, life and health policies to rural and farming citizens. It is a private, nonprofit organization that has been promoting farm and rural issues since 1936 through government relations, marketing, field representation, agricultural education and member services. N.C. Farm Bureau funds three programs featuring agriculture and education, which includes the R. Flake Shaw Scholarship Fund, designed to assist young people that pursue agriculture-related careers; Ag in the Classroom, which provides teachers with materials to teach the importance of agriculture in the economy; and Institutes for Future Agricultural Leaders, a week each year where students learn about agricultural careers with emphases placed on career opportunities, emerging technology, citizenship and leadership development. North Carolina Farm Bureau is owned and controlled by its policyholders through an elected board of directors. The bureau was incorporated in 1953 as a mutual insurance company.