Senior Jacqueline Rand was elected to serve as the 2023-2024 Area VI State Officer on Monday at the Area Convention. She will serve in that role her freshman year in college.
“The past year serving as Area VI President has been truly life changing,” Rand said. “As a leader, I learned so much about the power of living to serve others.”
The Texas FFA State Officer team is composed of 12 officers, one of each of the 12 areas in Texas. Rand was first to be elected for the 2023-2024 team.
This is a really exciting opportunity to pour back into the organization that has given me so much. I believe that each of us has a purpose: to lead, to serve, to love, to dream, or otherwise.
— senior Jacqueline Rand
The state officer process begins in January starting with a written exam on agriculture knowledge and FFA history. Then had to go through an interview process with a panel of industry professionals, agriculture science teachers, and even some of her Area officer teammates.
“I spent a year learning to look beyond myself to truly see all kinds of individuals for their strengths,” Rand said. “I found a purpose of moving towards the wallflowers, the misfits, and the shy leaders and reminding them that within this organization, they have a voice, a home, and a family.”
She presented a speech at the Mineola District Convention in January and was elected as the district candidate for State officer and advanced to Area. On Monday, she spoke again to over 1,000 people and was finally elected to office. In July she will run for President of Texas FFA at Texas FFA State Convention which will be held in the new Dallas Convention Center in Dallas during the second week of July 2023.
“Many, many friends, family members, teachers, and mentors have been nothing but supportive of my decision to run for state office,” Rand said. “It has taken a village to get me to this point, and I couldn’t have made it here without the love and support from the people around me. I cannot wait to embark on this journey of a lifetime.”
