Celebrating a century of agricultural education

2 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA Celebrating a century of agricultural education gricultural education at Sheridan High School celebrates its 100-year anniversary this year. The first agriculture classes were taught in 1917-1918 by Mr. N. O. Booth, a Harvard graduate that only was in Sheridan for a couple of years. Agricultural education really started taking off in 1921 when the agriculture instructor, Mr. Howard started the first Agriculture Club. The club grew fast and by 1924 had 75 members. The club then joined the Future Farmers WARD COTTON of America in 1928, becoming the third chapter in the state of Wyoming. The agricultural education program and the FFA have been a part of the Sheridan community this past century. The importance of the program to members of the community and students alike, displays our foundation of beliefs and behavior, as well as, essential skills from leadership to basic problem solving that is used every day. The only way I can explain is to demonstrate how much of an influence the agriculture classes, and FFA had on me. I started with the FFA in 1967 with Dutch Hartwig as instructor and continued with Mr. James Bohn as my ag teacher for the reminder of my high school career. The leadership and people skills along with the understanding on how to prioritize was a key factor in my functioning as an enlisted man in the Navy; and later as a commanding officer in the Army. As a teacher I use skills that were modeled and reinforced for me not only by the community that I grew up in, but also by the members of my agriculture class and the instructor. The ability to speak to a group of people is one of the greatest skills that I learned; and for those out there that remember, if you can stand up and speak in front of Jim Bohn you can speak anywhere. My grandchildren are in the agricultural education program now and it is one of the strongest foundations of the Sheridan community that has helped to create the type of citizens that make this community one that stands out 100 years and counting. WARD A COTTON is an agriculture instructor at Sheridan High School. COURTESY PHOTO

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 3 What is agricultural science education and the FFA? FROM SHS AGRICULTURE ADVISORS SHERIDAN The agricultural education program is built on the three core areas of classroom/laboratory instruction, supervised agricultural experience programs and FFA student organization activities/opportunities. The program is designed for delivery through these three components as follows: Classroom/laboratory instruction quality instruction in and about agriculture that utilizes a learning by doing philosophy. Supervised agricultural experience programs All students are expected to have a work-based learning experience while enrolled in agricultural education courses. Proficiency awards can be awarded to students in 51 areas of interest. Students can tailor the SAE program to meet their individual goals in life. Students can use service or volunteer time for SAE. Students need to keep records of all activities, income and expenses. FFA student organization activities/opportunities FFA activities are an integral part of the agricultural education program that all agricultural education students should participate in if they are to fully benefit from their enrollment in the program. Leadership, public presentations and personal growth are key elements of the FFA. Students have the ability to win awards in each of these areas. There are five degree levels in the FFA that students may reach Discovery, Greenhand, Chapter, State and American. Each degree level has requirements set by the national FFA. The FFA members are expected to dress and act like professionals. Official dress is stated in the official manual. FFA members also may be part of a number of teams that compete for the Chapter. Chapter awards consider a point system based on the activities and events that individual students have been involved with in the chapter. Students must be a member of an agriculture class to be FFA members. That is any class taught by Mr. Christensen or Mr. Cotton. The John B. Kendrick FFA chapter started in 1929 with 50 members of what had been the Agriculture Club. Many of the founding members are related to members in the organization today. The FFA organization is leadership and personal growth based, many of the members will never work in production agriculture. However 57 percent of all occupations in the nation have a strong relationship to agriculture. The leadership and organization skills students learn are important in every part of life. JUSTIN SHEELY THE SHERIDAN PRESS Ward Cotton explains to the audience what he looks for in showmanship while judging entries in the Sheridan County Fair on Aug. 1, 2017, at the Sheridan County Fairgrounds.

4 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA A year of success for John B. Kendrick Chapter of FFA ur John B. Kendrick FFA chapter has had a very busy year and still has more to come. Our closest event that is coming up is our Ag Olympics at the Sheridan County Fairgrounds. The Ag Olympics will be the start of National FFA week. This event will include an agriculture related relay race with the Buffalo FFA chapter. There will be a traveling trophy that will go to the winning chapter for the year. For National FFA Week we will have a display in the Chamber of Commerce and within our school. We will also be having a teacher breakfast put on by our own FFA members Feb. 21. This breakfast will be a sign of our appreciation for our teachers and everything they do for the chapter and the members. Our year has really picked up since December because of us starting our CDEs, or career development events. This year we have a lot of teams competing in a variety of different events like horse and livestock judging, public speaking, sales and markets and ag mechanics. There are practices every week and competitions all over Wyoming leading up to state FFA event. State will be at the end of April and we will be taking all qualifying teams and speakers to Cheyenne to compete to get to nationals. We work toward state and nationals for most of the year and in doing this it teaches our members skills that they can use later in their lives. With state coming up fast we are also coming up to the end of our officer terms. Officer applications and interviews will be out soon. At our banquet we will be recognizing our new officer team and awarding people from our chapter and the community. This banquet is a ways away and for now we are focusing on our members and competitions ahead. Our year has been and will continue to be amazing while we help bring up leaders. Betty Ann Jerney Chapter reporter COURTESY PHOTO John B. Kendrick FFA chapter member Hunter Benedict spends time with his project cow and calf.

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 5 Team building for officers Officers of the Sheridan High School John B. Kendrick Chapter of the FFA spend some time on a lake for their retreat in July 2017. COURTESY PHOTO

6 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA Step up, step out becomes motto for Clear Creek FFA FROM CLEAR CREEK FFA Step up, step out became the motto for the Arvada-Clearmont school after being created by the Clear Creek FFA members. To the students, this means stepping up to challenges and stepping out of their comfort zone. The 25 FFA members have certainly proved they are following this philosophy through the activities they have been participating in. Some of the activities include the Cattlewomen s Ag Expo, benefits for members of the community, the annual reindeer games, public speaking competitions, state CDEs and the annual elementary presentation. For Ag Expo, the sixth-hour FFA members donated their time to create a presentation for the elementary students attending the event. Members who participated were able to strengthen their leadership skills while showing involvement in the FFA and their community. The members donated their time in the shop to create items ranging from handmade tile top tables to post pullers, so they could be donated for several community benefits. These items had gone to a benefit for Toby Vineyard, as well as Kaylee Stidham to help with medical costs. Kaylee s benefit was held during the school s annual Halloween Carnival the FFA chapter puts on. Other annual events the FFA chapter runs to help with student involvement include reindeer games and the elementary presentation during FFA Week. The Clear Creek FFA also participates in annual CDE competitions at the Wyoming State FFA Convention in Cheyenne. These competitions test the members abilities in agricultural related events. Some of the events are ag mechanics, meat judging, quiz bowl, creed, prepared speaking and ag sales. The Clear Creek FFA also participates in the livestock judging CDE. The four members of the team were extremely successful and placed in the top 10 at the NILE in Billings, Montana. They showed that they will step up to the challenge they were given. During the Wyoming State FFA Convention four seniors from the Clear Creek FFA will receive the state degree. The four seniors are Derick Buhr, Galen Kretschman, Shaylee Adamson and Ben Briscoe. Overall the Clear Creek FFA had an extremely successful year full of personal growth, leadership building and stepping up to the challenge while stepping out of their comfort zones. From left in back, Galen Kretschman, Derick Buhr and Shaylee Adamson teach Sheridan County fourth-graders at the annual Ag Expo at the Sheridan County Fairgrounds. COURTESY PHOTO

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 7 COURTESY PHOTO Members of the Clear Creek Chapter of the FFA are, beck row from left, McKenna Auzqui, Ashlynn Fennema, Clayton Auzqui, Anthony Graves, Ben Briscoe, Terissa McClure and Torrey Veach. Middle row, from left, are Charlynn Mercer, Travis McBride, Tristin Hall, Parker Manor, Cameron Klatt, Kristin Klaahsen, Shaylee Adamson and Taziree Smith. In front, from left, are Lynne Latham, John Klier, Galen Kretschman, Tanner Klatt, Derick Buhr, Darion Hawbaker and John Malli.

8 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA Tongue River Valley FFA credits sponsors with year s success his year, the Tongue River Valley FFA chapter has a total of 16 members. The FFA chapter is competing in the following career development events (CDEs) and leadership development events (LDEs): meats evaluation and technology, prepared public speaking, extemporaneous public speaking, employment skills, FFA creed speaking and a parliamentary procedure team, all of which will compete during the state FFA contest in Cheyenne, Wyoming, in April. Each FFA member is required to go to their respective CDE practice on their designated day where they spend at least an hour working on the CDE events for the state competition each week. Our chapter has participated in several different events over the school year. During the fall our chapter teamed with the Cattle Women s Association to help put on the Ag Expo, an event where FFA members from across the county teach fourth-grade students from the county about varying aspects of agriculture. Shortly after, we began our annual fruit and meat sales, where each member was asked to sell at least 15 boxes of fruit. If Greenhand members sold 15 boxes of fruit, the chapter would pay for their FFA jacket. With continued fundraising success, the vending machine, purchased last year has provided our chapter and we are now exploring the possibility to purchase a vending machine for drinks. During the fall, we got the opportunity to go to the 2017 FFA nationals convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. This trip was possible with the fundraising events, such as a pig raffle, along with generous help from community businesses. Our trip would not have been possible without the help from our platinum sponsors: Columbus Peak Ranch, Sunlight Ranch, Sheridan County Implement, C and K Equipment, First Northern Bank; our gold sponsors: Heartland Kubota and Fremont motors; our silver sponsors: Sheridan County Farm Bureau, Rantec, Farmers CO-OP, Cloud Peak Energy and Valley Meat; and our bronze sponsors: Shipton s Big R and First Federal Bank and Trust. Madison Miller Tongue River Valley FFA COURTESY PHOTO tured, from left, are Madison Miller, Sadie Koltiska, Anastasia Beutler, Aaron Jensen and Theron Kalasinsky. Not pictured: Sydney Butlet.

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 9 Tongue River Valley FFA serves up pancakes Sophomore student Abby Keller, left, and FFA student Madison Miller prepare for a pancake feed at Tongue River High School in Dayton Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2017. The FFA students made pancakes for students, but students had to earn the pancakes by answering questions about parliamentary procedure. The FFA Chapter planned the event to help the student body grow their knowledge in the procedure, which they say helps develop leadership skills. JUSTIN SHEELY THE SHERIDAN PRESS

10 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA FACTS ABOUT FFA SOURCE: WWW.FFA.ORG

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 11 Feb. 17-24 marks National FFA Week FROM WWW.FFA.ORG Agriculture is part of our daily lives from the food we eat to the clothes we wear. This week, more than 653,000 FFA members will celebrate the role agriculture plays in our lives while sharing the message of agricultural education as part of National FFA Week. National FFA Week is a time for FFA members to host activities that raise awareness about the role the National FFA Organization plays in the development of agriculture s future leaders and the importance of agricultural education. National FFA Week always runs Saturday to Saturday and encompasses Feb. 22, George Washington s birthday. This year, the week kicks off on Feb. 17 and culminates on Feb. 24. The National FFA board of directors designated the weeklong tradition, which began in 1948, in recognition of Washington s legacy as an agriculturist and farmer. A group of young farmers founded FFA in 1928, influencing generations that agriculture is more than planting and harvesting it involves science, business and more. The organization s mission is to prepare future generations for the challenges of feeding a growing population. Today, FFA continues to help the next generation meet new agricultural challenges, develop unique talents and explore a broad range of career pathways. Today s FFA members are tomorrow s future biologists, chemists, veterinarians, engineers and entrepreneurs. National FFA Week is a time for FFA members to share agriculture with their fellow students as well as their communities. Chapters also give back to their communities through service projects and recruit students to become FFA members. For example, next week, the Kenmare FFA Chapter in North Dakota will work with local partners to fix up apartments at the Community Housing Facility. These apartments are part of a nonprofit that houses community members in need. Another chapter, located in Whiteland, Indiana, will collect supplies for 100 art kits that will go to a local children s hospital. These are just two examples of the service events during the week. During National FFA Week, the six national officers will visit chapters across the country. Western Region Vice President Bryce Cluff will visit Utah; Gracie Furnish, eastern region vice president, will visit Alabama; Erica Baier, central region vice president, will visit Virginia; Ian Bennett, southern region vice president, will visit Colorado; Piper Merritt, national secretary, will visit Indiana; and National FFA President Breanna Holbert will visit Minnesota. National FFA Week is also a time for alumni and sponsors to advocate for agricultural education and FFA. On Tuesday, Feb. 20, the National FFA Foundation will celebrate Give FFA Day, a 24-hour campaign encouraging the public to support various needs impacting FFA members. If interested in giving, visit FFA.org/ giveffaday. On Wednesday, alumni and supporters will celebrate Alumni Day and announce a new benefit for members. Friday, Feb. 23, FFA members and supporters are encouraged to wear blue and show their FFA pride!

12 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA Earning funds for scholarships Sheridan FFA students, from left, Jentry Reid, Selena Kamran and Lainey Konetzki serve food during the inaugural FFA Barn Bash in October 2017 at Born in a Barn out Highway 14 East. Proceeds from the fundraiser will go to scholarships for graduating seniors at Sheridan s John B. Kendrick FFA program. JUSTIN SHEELY THE SHERIDAN PRESS Proud to be a Supporter of Sheridan County FFA! 307-672-6356 12 Big Horn Meadows Drive Sheridan, WY ssrconstruction@vcn.com

FFA WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS 13 I believe in the future of agriculture, with a faith born not of words but of deeds - achievements won by the present and past generations of agriculturists; in the promise of better days through better ways, even as the better things we now enjoy have come to us from the struggles of former years. I believe that to live and work on a good farm, or to be engaged in other agricultural pursuits, is pleasant as well as challenging; for I know the joys and discomforts of agricultural life and hold an inborn fondness for those associations which, even in hours of discouragement, I cannot deny. I believe in leadership from ourselves and respect from others. I believe in my own ability to work efficiently and think clearly, with such FFA CREED knowledge and skill as I can secure, and in the ability of progressive agriculturists to serve our own and the public interest in producing and marketing the product of our toil. I believe in less dependence on begging and more power in bargaining; in the life abundant and enough honest wealth to help make it so--for others as well as myself; in less need for charity and more of it when needed; in being happy myself and playing square with those whose happiness depends upon me. I believe that American agriculture can and will hold true to the best traditions of our national life and that I can exert an influence in my home and community which will stand solid for my part in that inspiring task.

14 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA 1917 The Smith-Hughes National Vocational Education Act (both Smith and Hughes were Georgia Congressmen) established vocational agriculture courses. 1925 Virginia Tech agricultural education teacher educators Henry Groseclose, Harry Sanders, Walter S. Newman and Edmund C. Magill organized the Future Farmers of Virginia for boys in agriculture classes. The FFV served as the model for the Future Farmers of America. 1928 Future Farmers of America established in Kansas City, Missouri. First National FFA Convention held in Kansas City: 33 delegates from 18 states in attendance. Leslie Applegate of New Jersey selected as the first national FFA president. First sectional gathering of New Farmers of America members held. 1929 National blue and corn gold adopted as official colors. Thirty-five state associations with approximately 1,500 chapters and 30,000 members affiliated with the national organization. 1930 Official FFA Creed, written by E.M. Tiffany, adopted. 1939 28.5 acres of land purchased near Alexandria, Virginia, for the first FFA-owned national headquarters; the land was part of George Washington s estate. 1944 Future Farmers of America Foundation formed to raise money from business, industry, government, individuals and sponsors for FFA programs and activities. A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE FFA 1948 Record jump in membership from 238,269 in 1947 to 260,300 in 1948; so many members attended the 20th National FFA Convention that a folding-cot hotel was set up in the basement of the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City. First FFA Week celebrated during the week of George Washington s birthday. 1950 A bill was passed by the 81st Congress of the United States that granted FFA a federal charter and specified that a U.S. Department of Education staff member be the national FFA advisor. On Aug. 30, President Harry S. Truman signed the bill. 1969 FFA opened membership to girls, making it possible for them to hold office and participate in competitive events. 1988 Future Farmers of America changed its name to the National FFA Organization to reflect the growing diversity in the industry of agriculture. 1998 National FFA Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, dedicated July 20. 2013 Ram Truck s So God Made a Farmer Super Bowl commercial exceeds 18 million views on YouTube; company donates $1 million to FFA. 2015 A record 65,173 FFA members, advisors and guests attend the 88th National FFA Convention & Expo in Louisville, Kentucky. 2016 Membership hits all-time high with 649,355 members in 7,859 chapters. SOURCE: WWW.FFA.ORG

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16 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018 THE SHERIDAN PRESS FFA