FFA students attended district in Winona Wednesday and had eight students qualify for Area. They competed in Leadership Development events as well as team and individual events.   

“I believe that our kids have trained very hard,” FFA director Dylan Bacon said. “ They know the job they need to do today, and I am confident in their abilities. I feel well prepared going into the District contest.”

Junior Jacqueline Rand placed first in senior reed speaking and Lane Olds placed third in Greenhand creed speaking. In Ag Issues Forum, the team of Lexi Keels, Jaxson Buttram, Rylee Ford, Caleb Riches, Gracie Day, and Jaclyn Brandon placed third.

“I feel great that I was able to advance to Area,” Rand said. “FFA is super fun and it allows me to get many scholarship opportunities, which I look forward to.”

    There were 37 students competing in 13 different events. They included Greenhand-level Quiz, Chapter Conducting, Creed Speaking, and Skills Demonstration, Senior-level Quiz, Chapter Conducting, Creed Speaking, and Skills Demonstration, as well as Ag Issues Forum, Ag Advocacy, Public Relations, Broadcasting, and Job Interview.

“I feel very confident in my team’s ability to perform well in our competition,” sophomore Jaxson Buttram said. “I’m very excited to see the results of our hard work.”

The Leadership Development Events focus on creating situations for members to demonstrate their abilities in public speaking, decision making, communication and their knowledge of agriculture and the FFA organization. Team and individual events are used to reinforce what is taught in agricultural science classrooms.

“I love competing in FFA,” Rand said. “All of our hard work is rewarded with amazing results, and it’s nice to see everything pay off.