CONTACT: JIM MORRIS |
Vol. 43, No. 45
June 1, 2009
The Face of Leadership: FFA Officers Meet State Board
of Education; Discuss Leadership Development
Participation in Missouri CTSOs is flourishing.
A group of 17 Missouri FFA officers met with the State Board of Education last week (May 28) in Jefferson City to share their perspectives on how they are learning the attributes of effective leaders and how the FFA organization has enhanced their experiences in high school.
State FFA President Samantha Warner, a recent graduate of Archie High School, and FFA Secretary Lauren Weiker, a recent graduate of Slater High School, spoke on behalf of the FFA state leadership team, who observed the State Board of Education meeting and were an unmistakable presence in their traditional blue-and-gold corduroy FFA jackets.
The young women briefly and professionally shared their own stories about how they became interested in FFA and how their agricultural education experiences helped them build confidence, leadership skills and a stronger academic and social connection to high school. They both admitted that their stereotyped views of agriculture were pleasantly dashed around the eighth grade when they began to explore the range of careers that exists in today’s dynamic food, fiber and natural resource system.
“Organizations like the FFA are vitally important in helping young people develop a network of friends and mentors as they learn to apply their academic skills in real-world settings. These organizations provide a way for high school students to learn leadership skills and other ‘soft skills’ that employers say are so important to them. Groups like the FFA are a powerful complement to a quality academic program,” said Interim Commissioner of Education Bert Schulte.
Dr. Schulte also is a former vice president of the FFA chapter at Eldon High School.
Dr. Russell Thompson, president of the State Board of Education, and other board members expressed their appreciation to the students for articulating the value and the influence of career and technical student organizations such as the FFA.
Missouri FFA continues to grow and now has the fourth-largest state membership in the nation. This year, more than 24,000 students participated in FFA’s 317 chapters across the state. Nationally, FFA has more than 500,000 members in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
In Missouri, more than 77,000 students participated in a career and technical student organization (CTSO) this year. Missouri has nine organizations serving high school and college students with career interests in business, marketing, entrepreneurship, health, family and consumer sciences, skilled services, technology, trade and industrial fields.