ightening in the sky sparks within the
blink of an eye. Similarly, it seems our year
serving as state officers has occurred just as
quick. Our year has been full of wonderful
memories- ranging from industry tours and
chapter visits to COLC’s and Made For
Excellence Conferences. In the last issue of
California FFA News, we discussed the joy we
experienced during our chapter visit season,
highlighting a specific moment from each
chapter. In the issue prior, we reviewed the
knowledge of the agricultural industry that we
gained as we ventured through industry tours,
as well as the fun we had with each region
during COLC’s. Since then, we have facilitated
Made For Excellence Conferences (MFE),
toured extraordinary Supervised Agricultural
Experience projects in each region, and spent
our time planning for the remainder of our
year. Although this year of service has gone
by speedily, we look into the future, as we will
“Electrify” the accomplishments of all California
FFA members at the 88th State FFA Leadership
Conference.
Trevor, Breanna, Tim, Joelle, Sydnie and I
loved meeting over 1,600 members during
the months of January and February as we
facilitated eight leadership conferences geared
towards sophomores in high school. These
conferences, titled Made For Excellence, are
geared towards second-year FFA members. At
MFE, members will understand the potential
within themselves that is necessary to be
sucessful future leaders, while discovering
their strengths and creating action plans to
implement in their lives. These conferences were
located at multiple locations across the state,
with conferences in Sacramento, Redding,
Monterey, Ontario, Modesto, and Visalia.
We loved hanging out with all of you at the
dance after each conference, and seeing the
enthusiasm
that
each
r e g i o n
P age 6
had! As we
MFE & ALA Recaps
ended this
season, we
were filled
with gratitude as well as belief, as we know
our communities are in good hands as long
as all the bright ideas and promises made at
MFE become more than just pen and paper.
We are thankful for the relationships we built
at each MFE.
After MFE’s concluded, we shifted from the
leadership aspect of Agricultural Education
towards industry and technical portions with
Supervised Agricultural Experiences, or SAEs.
Our team has traveled to each region and
toured the STAR finalists for each categoryAgribusiness, Ag Placement, Agriscience, and
finally, STAR Farmer. At these tours, a regional
finalist
in
each area
presents
P age 1 0
their SAE to
Meet the 2016
us through
STAR Award Finalists
a
visual
display
and
a
verbal dialogue about their project. It was
such an honor to see such diverse projects
in each category! After seeing these tours,
our eyes were opened to the knowledge,
labor, innovative, and dedication each finalist
invested towards their projects. We left these
tours feeling inspired at the impact Agricultural
Education has on the agricultural industry. As
members, we must always think of ways that
we can grow upon our agricultural experiences
and use the resources we can connect with
because of our organization. How can you
work towards being a STAR finalist in one of
these areas?
State Degree Ceremonies, Spring Regional
Meetings, and State Conference preparations
now fill our agendas. With the 88th State FFA
Leadership Conference just around the corner,
we are getting anxious to see every FFA member
we have met this year. At State Conference,
we will have two keynote speakers, including
the nationally recognized Brooks Gibbs, and
the author and creator of Kid President, Brad
Montague. We will also have two visiting
National Officers, Taylor McNeel and Nick
Baker. Lastly, we will listen, sing, and dance
to the country music