The Environmental Natural Resource (ENR) team placed 24th in the state competition held at Tarleton State University on April 24. The team went to two different contests in preparation for the state contest and started practice in January.

“I really enjoyed this team and how they stepped up and came together,” career technology teacher Cleveland Morris said. “There wasn’t anything asked them to do that they didn’t try to meet expectations.”

The ENR contest is a FFA career development event. At the meet, students were tasked with evaluating a piece of land to determine if it is fit to raise crops and sustain wildlife.

“Being part of the team and getting to work together makes it all worth it,” senior Jace Cawthen said. “You learn a lot from your teammates, and it is fun to compete.”

Members evaluate the piece of land as an entire team and must develop coherent group skills to complete their task. They may help each other at any point during the competition if an individual member needs assistance.

“We are basically a huge family,” senior Haley Davis said. “It’s good to have people to support you when you don’t know the answer. They are there to help which shows they truly care about what they are doing.”

At practices, team members studied soil samples and looked at notebooks that had wildlife footprints with their food types. Additional skills members learn include GPS navigation and water quality evaluation.

“I enjoyed preparing with this team,” senior Jose Vargas said. “I’m going to miss my teammates a lot, and I’m so glad I decided to compete this year.”