The National FFA Convention and Expo runs through Saturday, Oct. 29 – bringing tens of thousands of FFA members from around the country to downtown Indianapolis. Among those attending this year’s convention are FFA members from Gibson County in southwestern Indiana.
“What they learn in FFA, they can translate to anything down the road in their life,” said Jessie Mraz, FFA Advisor and ag teacher at Gibson Southern High School. She brought FFA members from her school to show them the many different opportunities for careers in the ag industry.
“For me, I just want them to go and look at all the booths and see that ag is not just farming,” said Mraz. “They can be in sales – they can be in marketing – they can be a mechanic – they can be in communications – and not think that I have to be a farmer to be in ag.”
One of her students is Courtney Heldt, who was impressed with the large number of ag businesses and colleges represented at the convention.
“It’s just very informational. You get to see a lot of different opportunities, colleges and different things that you don’t normally get to see,” said Heldt.
Jack Rose, another FFA member from Gibson Southern High School, met with the International Farm Youth Exchange and said he was interested in possibly working and studying across Europe.
“They said that we could get with farm families and stay with them for two to three weeks, then move to other places like Germany or Italy and learn about their culture,” said Rose.
Not only does the National FFA Convention offer learning experiences for students, but for advisors and parents as well.
“I’ve always gone to convention even during my student teaching. For the kids, it’s important to actually see the vastness of FFA and that other chapters do things differently,” says Mraz.
Even though the Gibson Southern FFA members said they were most excited about experiencing the World’s Toughest Rodeo at the Indiana State Fairgrounds during the convention, Mraz says the highlight of the trip is that the Gibson Southern FFA program was just named a 3-star chapter.
“It’s just a great opportunity for the kids. It’s their favorite trip of the year and we’re just honored to be here and getting our National Chapter Award. Being a 3-star chapter, that’s been a goal for many years and we’re finally there,” said Mraz.
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