Missouri FFA News
August 19, 2009
Missouri FFA Officers Attend State Presidents' Conference
 |
Front row (left to right): Riley Branch, National FFA Western Region Vice President; Samantha Warner, Missouri FFA President; Lauren Weiker, Missouri FFA Secretary; and Paul Moya, National FFA President. Back row (left to right): Regina Holliday, National Southern Region Vice President; Laila Hajji, National Central Region Vice President; Hannah Crossen, National Eastern Region Vice President; and Nessie Early, National FFA Secretary |
Missouri FFA officers Samantha Warner, president, and Lauren Weiker, secretary, were among the national group of FFA student leaders who participated in the FFA State Presidents' Conference in Washington, DC, last month. The gathering of state FFA presidents and an additional officer from each state and two U.S. territories prepared them for their responsibilities as delegates to the 2009 National FFA Convention, to be held Oct. 21-24 in Indianapolis, Ind.
A highlight of the event was a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack at the Department of Education’s Potomac Center Plaza, July 22, where he talked to FFA student leaders about the importance of leadership for the agriculture industry as well as the need for sustainable agriculture.
In addition to attending advocacy workshops and meeting Secretary Vilsack, the state officers had the opportunity to meet with Deputy Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education Glenn Cummings, as well as their local congressional leaders. Activities included visits to the Jefferson Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, Lincoln Memorial, FDR Memorial and other historical landmarks.
The conference theme, “Unwritten Legacy,” provided an impetus for state officers to write legacies of their own as they impact FFA members this year in more than 7,439 schools nationwide.
The FFA is a national youth organization of 507,763 student members in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands – all preparing for leadership and careers in the science, business and technology of agriculture. The Missouri FFA is the fourth largest state chapter with nearly 25,000 members.
Visit www.ffa.org for more information.