National FFA Convention

As I am watching the National FFA convention I started wondering how many forum members are FFA alumni or have kids in the FFA.  I was not a member and didn't have exposure to it as a kid.  Connecticut has a small Vo-Ag program and not growing up on a farm I didn't know about it.  I am very impressed by these kids and their families have a lot to be proud of.

If you are or were an FFA member, would you be willing to share the biggest thing that you gained, learned or how it effected your life?  It would be interesting to see if you are still carrying those lessons with you.

Former member. I learned a lot through FFA. Mechanics, range plants, livestock judging, and probably the most important for me, as I struggled with it the most, was public speaking and communication skills. Met a lot of nice people, made many friends, and had way too much fun at national convention!

Edited by baverwolf - 25 Oct 2017 at 7:59pm

I was a member in high school. I enjoyed it to an extent, but honestly in the town I grew up, FFA was the biggest joke there ever was. I didn't learn a darn thing in it. I learn more from my grandpa in a week than I did from 3 years in FFA. (I was only in it for 3 years, as I didn't even know we had an FFA during my freshman year. That's how little it was pushed/advertised) The teacher spent most all the days with his feet up on the desk eating peanuts and looking at ATVs and Ford tractors on Craigslist. We welded a little bit, but not enough to shake a stick at. Some people showed livestock, but the adviser limited them to hogs or sheep. 1 boy showed chickens independently and a girl showed steers, also independently. Many of us wanted to show cattle or other animals through FFA, but he wouldn't allow it. We also wanted a livestock judging team, but he didn't, so it didn't happen. A group of us boys wanted to form a tractor restoration team and hopefully make it to the National level with that, but that again was shot down. We had the knowledge and tools, and even had a lady willing to donate a decent Farmall A for the project. 

I made 2 trips to national convention as a member. I have many great memories from my FFA years, one of the best was when I was on our district farm mechanics team and we placed 3rd in the state. Now my daughter is at the convention this week for her first time! What a fantastic organization!

'74-'78 In the big city of Surgoinsville TN. (Graduating 100% of a class of 42 students)Would not take anything for the experience. From soil judging to conventions, I tried to do it all. I have award plaques displayed in the farm office to this day . I had a real bad grade in junior English because I would rather be in shop or ag. Scott

Vice president my senior year. Did meat judging Junior and Senior years.

1972-1976.  Had great advisors my first three years and an OK advisor my senior year.  Learned a lot about public speaking, running organized meetins (through parlimentary procedure contests), soil judging, goofing off, etc.  Didn't learn much in the shop area as I was already working at Dad's dealership.  That's where I really learned stuff.

Creston, sad that you had such a poor excuse for an advisor. A good advisor who is really interested in the kids can make for a great FFA experience (see Sparky's post above). Teachers like that should be fired but in most systems that is near impossible but if they are politically incorrect they are gone. He really was not a teacher but just somebody with a degree drawing a paycheck.

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There was no FFA or shop class, or anything fun in the school I graduated from. Of course, it was a small school (9 students in my graduating class), so any extra curricular wasn't really feasible. It was play basketball, and that was about it. I am sure there were lots of up-sided things to attending a school this small though, that I am taking for granted. Some of us did skip out of a study hall daily and go down to the service station that our buddies owned, and take in a little "shop class" there. Now, fast forward to my kids. The school that they attended is hugely strong in FFA. All my kids except the youngest, have attended at least one or two national conventions. They've been to Oklahoma City for national range judging. They've been to nationals in meats judging. They've really thrived in it. I couldn't begin to list all of the accomplishments they've accumulated through FFA, by having an advisor who really had his heart and soul in the program, and the benefit of students being priority. There have been city kids that graduated from Hebron that have went on to become vo-ag teachers/FFA advisors. It's awesome. Darrel

My son and daughter are both at the convention in Indianapolis.
I was in FFA for 2 years. Our first advisor was a former state president. He ran a tight ship. My second year involved a fresh from college boy, that was limper than a wet noodle. He was so bad I dropped out of FFA a few weeks into my third year.
The advisor my kids have now is going a good job. We live in a rural area, but very few kids live on a farm. It is tough for him to keep the numbers up.

was a member wayyyyyyy back when. have several awards on livestock judging, and won a trip to an agricultural college for 2 weeks training on range and pasture management. still have my jacket in the upstairs closet, might fit Creston! seems to me back then, it was hands on, and now it's mostly hands on a mouse!

I sounds like FFA is much like the VICA program we had in Tech School.  I think they call it SkillsUSA now.  We competed in our trades, mine was electronics, as well as public speaking, parliamentary procedure, etc. much like FFA.

I only got involved during my senior year because it was a way out of class and a couple of days at the State competition.  Ironically, my event was held back at my school.  I learned a lot in VICA but most importantly I learned that I may have wasted four years of trade school because electronics was not going to be where I wanted to spend my career.  I came in dead last.  I ended up leaving college after my first year and going to paramedic school which got me my current job as a firefighter. 

I cannot see a happy me sitting at a test bench for the past 27 years but the FD has been a great career.  If I didn't compete in VICA I may not have known how little I really knew about my trade, how I really didn't enjoy it, and how far behind the rest of my peers I was.


Edited by DanC911 - 26 Oct 2017 at 1:30pm

I was in FFA for 4 years enjoyed every it of it . I was the head of the ag feild all 4 years.
did I the ag mechanics team at Msu and three years in a row won the competition I think the most vaulable thing I still use today especially sitting on a township board is parliamentary percedure and it's sad that most meetings today nobody know how to follow Roberts rules of order

KY wrote: I am an AG teacher and I'm here right now! I get to see first hand the positive influence FFA makes on young people.

It would be great if you could post some pics from the floor