Missouri
FFA TODAY Contents 1 FROM THE CLASSROOM TO THE FIELD 3 president’s perspective 7 BLUE JACKET BRIEF 8 CELEBRATING FFA WEEK 11LAUNCHPAD FOR LEARNING
ON THE
calendar
Feb. 12: Missouri Corn Scholarship Applications Due Feb. 15: HYMAX & HYPE Applications Due
CLASSROOM TO THE FIELD
FROM THE
ommonly known as contests in the FFA community, Career Development Events (CDEs) require more than luck or good timing. From skill to dedication and much preparation, oftentimes, the road to success in CDEs starts with a foundation of knowledge built in classroom education. “At the Cass Career Center, we prepare students for Career Development Events by teaching all students a foundational level of knowledge and skills of the CDE in the course where the curriculum is aligned,” says Jason
Dieckhoff, one of the agricultural education teachers and FFA advisors at Cass Career Center. “For example, we teach the content knowledge and performance skills of the Forestry CDE in our Conservation course, starting six weeks prior to the start of CDE events. In our Veterinary & Equine Science course, we train students for the Equine CDE. We feel all students benefit from the training, not just students who will be on the team.” CDEs aim to give students an outlet to apply knowledge from the classroom to continued on pAGE 4
FEB. 27 MU CAFNR Unlimited Banquet & Auction Feb. 20-27 National FFA Week March 15 Charles E Kruse Scholarship Applications Due
Agricultural education students at Cass Career Center begin preparing for FFA Career Development Events by starting with ground-level knowledge in the contest area where the curriculum is aligned.
March 30 Mo. Farm Bureau Foundation for Ag Vocational Scholarship App. Due
missouriffa.org
@Missouri FFA @missouriffa #MOFFAisHOME
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2020-21 State ffa officers Officer • Chapter Justin Eddy • Columbia President Mackenzie Porter • Archie 1st Vice President Jenna Perry • Liberal Secretary Vice Presidents Rachel Holt • Chillicothe Anna Milazzo • Grundy Co. Erin Heinecke • Paris Lauryn Robnett • Audrain Co. R-VI Colin Wilburn • Van Far Kiersten Helm • Lexington Kaylee Lower • Weaubleau Cade Shepherd • Mt. Vernon Felicity Cantrell • Seymour Lauren Gilbert • Chadwick Dakota Pemberton • Richland Madison Moll • Perryville Ricanna Spargo • Naylor State Officer Mentor Kensie Darst • Aurora Department of Elem. & Sec. Education P.O. Box 480, Jefferson City, MO 65102 Phone: (573) 751-3544. District Supervisors: Leon Busdieker, Marie Davis, Keith Dietzschold, Lisa Evans, David Higgins & Jim Spencer. Missouri FFA Association Joann Pipkin, Director of Communications Email: joann.pipkin@missouriffa.org Phone: (417) 827-2756
President’s
Perspective
elcome to 2021! I think we all can hope that this year is nothing like the last. As we approach spring, we can look forward to all of the opportunities FFA continues to offer during this challenging time. Over that past few months, your state officer team has been traveling around the state to present Greenhand Motivational Conferences (GMCs). While these are typically held at the start of January, we decided to modify the conference and instead visit each chapter individually bringing energy and enthusiasm to our greenhand members! If you have had a GMC already this year, I hope you enjoyed it! If not, be on the lookout for a state officer to be heading your way very soon! February marks a time for us to celebrate National FFA Week. It is a time when FFA members from around the country engage in fun and memorable experiences to celebrate our organization. Regardless of how your chapter is celebrating FFA week this year, we want to hear about it! Be sure to tag Missouri FFA on Instagram and Facebook with
pictures of the fun you all are having this year. As we approach what I call FFA season, let’s reflect on why we do what we do. Why do we participate in chapter activities? Why do we compete on contest teams? Why are we members of FFA? I hope that while we know we have fun during these events, there is a deeper meaning behind it. For me, I know that every time I participate in an FFA activity or contest, I am helping to achieve our vision of Growing Leaders, Building Communities and Strengthening Agriculture. As you work to do the same within your chapters, I encourage you to press on as the spring season approaches. FFA members, be excited! 2021 is here, and we are going to make it the best one yet! I cannot wait to see what we accomplish this year!
Missouri FFA Vice President Colin Wilburn works with Jamestown FFA members during a recent Greenhand Motivational Conference. Wilburn and State President Justin Eddy helped students explore opportunities in agricultural education and set goals for their time in FFA. Members wrote opportunities on the sheets of paper and then used the paper to build an “opportunity tower.” The activity demonstrated how members could achieve new heights by taking advantage of multiple opportunities.
Brandelyn Martin Twellman, Social Media Manager Email: brandelyn.twellman@missouriffa.org The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, or disability in its programs and activities. Inquiries related to department programs and to the location of services, activities and facilities that are accessible by persons with disabilities may be directed to the Jefferson State Office Building, Director of Civil Rights Compliance and MOA Coordinator (Title VI/Title IX/504/ADA/ADAAA/ Age Act/GINA/USDA Title VI), 5th Floor, 205 Jefferson Street, P.O. Box 480, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0480; telephone number 573-526-4757 or TTY 800-735-2966; email civilrights@dese.mo.gov.
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FROM PAGE A
the field. Amanda Haeberlin, agricultural education teacher and FFA advisor at Palmyra High School, says agricultural curriculum’s focus on career exploration pairs well with preparation for CDEs. Students’ interest in what they’re learning lends well to them joining a team in the spring. “I often mention why it’s part of the contest and how it applies to industry,” Haeberlin explains. “Plus, if you are teaching the curriculum, for a lot of them, it happens naturally.” These teams are an essential addition to agricultural education, allowing students to apply content directly related to industry careers. “They help students gain a number of skills,” Haeberlin says. “Job skills, speaking, work ethic. They give students a chance to excel outside of athletics. And they help them learn to deal with success and failure.” Dieckhoff adds, “CDEs are also important because they are designed by a collaboration of industry representation and post-secondary colleges, so we keep training our students to
the current industry demands and can adapt to new trends in the agriculture industry.” Once they understand the significance of CDEs, it’s important to motivate students and sort out their intentions for the season ahead. “Ag teachers have to rely on the personal relationships they have built with each student to see what will motivate them to do their best,” Dieckhoff explains. “Maybe that can be done through making practices fun or exciting,
“(CDEs) give students a chance to excel outside of athletics.” –Amanda HaeberlinPalmyra FFA Advisor
maybe it’s offering the only positive comments the student will hear in a day, and maybe it is convincing the student that they need this experience later on in their life.” Haeberlin adds that it is important to find out the student’s end goal. “Do they want to learn something new and have fun or do they want that and to be competitive and win,” she says. “If we all are not on the same page, we won’t enjoy contest season.” Dieckhoff believes measuring the success of a CDE team looks different than one might expect. “After 18 years of teaching, I have found students have success on a CDE when it significantly impacts their future,” he notes. “Having former students who took a job as a meat cutter after competing in the Meats CDE or get a job in a florist shop after doing the Floriculture CDE means more than any plaque on the wall. Those former students are making a real difference in their communities, and it was inspired by their involvement in CDEs.”
—By Brandelyn Twellman
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MFA supports you. The MFA Foundation has awarded more than 14,000 scholarships to students from rural communities where MFA Incorporated and MFA Oil Company and their affiliates conduct business. The foundation also contributes to the Missouri 4-H Foundation, Missouri FFA Association, Missouri Young Farmers Association and other programs consistent with its mission to provide educational opportunity for youth.
Return completed applications to your school counselor's office by February 15, 2021.
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Blue Jacket
Brief
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Come join a Collegiate Farm Bureau chapter at the college or university of your choice.
University of Missouri Animal Science & Ag Policy
MY hero: Former President Abraham Lincoln is my hero. He was an inspiring man who stayed true to his beliefs despite what others thought of him. This has shown me that life is not a popularity contest; it is about who I am and what I am going to do with my life. The greatest knowledge a person can have is the knowledge of knowing who he or she is. President Lincoln showed me how to be me.
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celebrating FFA WEEK Share your FFA Week Activities! email us at info@missouriffa.org.
missouriffa.org @Missouri FFA @missouriffa
#MOFFAisHOME A coloring contest for elementary students helps New Madrid Co. FFA members share agriculture’s story during National FFA Week.
Troy FFA members celebrate National FFA Week
by hosting a breakfast for members of the community.
LATHROP FFA members host a petting zoo for children in their community during Nationanl FFA Week.
Attending worship services together is an FFA Week activity for members of AUDRAIN CO. FFA.
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CAFNR experience
CARLEY ESSER Home FFA Chapter: BOONVILLE What CARLEY does: As a legislative assistant for Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler, Esser researches and develops policy related to trade, energy, environment, education, transportation and foreign aid. what FFA Taught Carley: FFA taught Carley both humility and time management. Through FFA, she learned putting forth effort into an activity would help her succeed. 10
LAUNCHPAD FOR
LEARNING arley Esser didn’t grow up on a farm. But that didn’t stop her from learning the impact of the agriculture industry and from making the most of her FFA
experience. Today, the former Boonville FFA member is a legislative assistant in Washington, D.C., for Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (MO-04). In her role, Esser researches and develops policy, engages with constituents and works with agencies to help influence policy and regulations that impact Missouri and the fourth congressional district. She also works on trade, energy, environment, education, transportation and foreign aid policy. “Having not grown up directly on a farm, FFA helped me gain a basic knowledge of the agriculture industry, take advantage of hands-on experiences I would have otherwise not been exposed to, and develop a love for public speaking — all while building a national network of amazing individuals,” Esser explains. As an FFA member, Esser held officer positions, participated in as many career and leadership development events as possible and admits rushing through art class projects so she could speed extra time in the agriculture classroom. Her Supervised Agricultural Experience project focused on raising chickens and helping her dad in his construction business while also working with the local parks and recreation department. Looking back on her time in the blue jacket, Esser says FFA helped her build a resume´ and sharpen her interview skills by competing in a variety of contents and experiences. The same
FFA sharpens Carley Esser’s skills all while cultivating her passion for agriculture. By Joann Pipkin preparation helped her apply for agriculturerelated internships and experiences that all assisted her in preparing for her current career. “My first trip to our nation’s capital was because of FFA’s Washington Leadership Conference, and now every year I get to see the flood of blue jackets across our city,” Esser says. “Even after adding a few more trips to Arlington Cemetery, I am just as excited when I get to explore the monuments today as I was then.” Esser is quick to note you get out of an activity what you put into it. In fact, she remembers feeling devastated when she passed up for a chapter officer position. The experience taught her both humility and time management. She explains, “It was brought to my attention that I was putting more time into sports, and I could not expect to reap the benefits of being an officer if I wasn’t willing to also put in the effort of supporting a team. I needed to better manage my time if I wanted to succeed on the ball field and the FFA field.” 11
To Esser, FFA provides a launchpad for students to develop into well-rounded, contributing members of society. “You don’t have to be going into production agriculture to benefit from the FFA,” she says. “While that is an important and valuable route, the industry is so diverse and needs advocates both inside and outside the industry.” Esser encourages FFA members to be active in the organization as well as other opportunities. She says exposing yourself to all you can while focusing on building and keeping genuine relationships is key. “While experience plays a large role in getting jobs, I am where I am today because of exposure to opportunities and the people who helped get me here,” Esser says. “Every career door opened because of genuine relationships with people who believed in my ability and trusted that I would not let them down. FFA helped expose me to various career paths, people and opportunities to put learning into practice.”
Let us help you reach your goals. Scholarships* Shaping Rural Missouri grants** Interest-free funding for qualifying 4-H and FFA projects** Paid Internships
You are the next generation of agriculturists, and we can't wait to see what you do. You know that just having the desire to reach your goals isn't enough. It takes planning and action to make it happen. We want to help you on that road to success. Give us a call or visit myfcsfinancial.com to learn more about the opportunities available through our youth support programs.
Find an FCS Financial office near you: *Scholarship applicants must meet all qualifications in application to be eligible **Grant and Ag Youth Funding applicants must be a member of a 4-H club or FFA chapter located in one of the 102 Missouri counties served by FCS Financial. Growing Relationships. Creating Opportunities. is a trademark of FCS Financial, ACA.
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