MINNESOTA FFA TODAYPUBLISHED BY THE MINNESOTA FFA ASSOCIATION

State FairRecap

National Convention Preview

Social MediaEngagment

Summertime Camps

National Convention Preview

FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.

Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve

State StaffExecutive Secretary: Mr. Jim ErtlState Advisor: Mr. Joel LarsenLeadership Development Coordinator: Ms. Lavyne RadaFoundation Executive Director: Ms. Val Aarsvold

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STATE CAMPS MN FFA members attended WLC SGLC and SLCCL in June and July

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13ENGAGE ONLINEWhat MN FFA is doing with the popularity of Social Media.

Officer Update Discover what MN FFA State Officers are up.

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The Eight Regions Each region is diverse, read what is happening in each region!

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NATIONAL CONVENTION UPDATE Who is representing MN FFA?

Connect & Content

State OfficersPresident....................Jack Roessler Vice President...............Kyla MaukSecretary...................Valerie EarleyTreasurer.......................Brady WulfReporter.........................Erin LarsonSentinel...................Dalton Kampsen

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summer 2014camps // Conferences // FUN

State Greenhand Leadership Conference (SGLC) is a conference designed for Greenhand FFA members. It is a five day conference that offers students an oppor-tunity to learn more about FFA, discover their poten-tial as a leader, meet people their age from across the state of Minnesota, and have tons of fun! The confer-ence encourages new members to get involved and explore the many experiences that FFA has to offer. This year, over 130 FFA members attended SGLC. The conference was June 23-27 and held at Deep Portage Conservation Reserve in Hackensack, Minnesota. Throughout the week, FFA members experienced FFA and leadership through the eyes of a spy or detective.

The 2014 SGLC Theme was “Secret Agents: The Mis-sion Within”. Sessions included exploring the different types of Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE) and Career Development Events (CDE), developing profes-sional and personal leadership, and identifying further opportunities in the FFA. During the week, FFA mem-bers got the chance to hike, swim, canoe, rock climb, swing dance, and compete in a volleyball tournament. The week was one to remember as FFA members discovered their mission within and how FFA can fulfill everyoneʼs personal mission.

"My time at SGLC was a time that I won't forget. I met so many new people, learned about so many new things having to do with FFA, and got to spend time with some of the greatest State and Region officers. If you get a chance to attend this camp, do it; you won't regret it” -Destiney Baier, Ulen FFA

State greenhandleadership conference

State Leadership Conference for Chapter Leaders (SLCCL) is the second Summer leadership confer-ence offered for Minnesota FFA members. It is a three and a half day conference that focuses on the memberʼs ability to serve on the chapter level. Aspects of leadership and personal growth are also covered. This conference is designed primarily for high school sophomore and juniors. Each year two sessions of SLCCL are put on at Deep Portage Conservation Reserve. The first session was July 13th-16th and the second session was July 16th-19th.

Over 170 FFA members attended SLCCL between the two sessions. This year, sessions at SLCCL were focused around the 15 areas of the program of activites. Each area of student, chapter, and com-munity development were covered so members could exchange different ideas in all areas. The 2014 SLCCL Theme was “Sail True North”. Members were given the opportunity to find their true north through teamwork and accountability practices, practicing communication skills, and identifying opportunities in FFA at the state and national level. so members could exchange different ideas in all areas: "A summary of the camp committee reports with all of these ideas is located at:http://goo.gl/bBRmQn.

State leadership conference for chapter leaders

Washington Leadership Conference

Washington Leadership Conference, or WLC, is a service-based leadership conference in which FFA members from across the country meet in our nationʼs capital to learn more about issues in the world and how as citizens, we can work together to help fix these problems. Those who attend often refer to the experience as “life changing” and come back with an incredible passion for not only FFA, but also for making a difference in their communities and in the lives of those around them. This past year 45 members from 23 different chapters in Minnesota attended the conference. These members got the experience of visiting the Newseum and the historic “Mall” overlooking many famous monu-ments and memorials. These members were challenged to really look at the meaning behind these historical objects and locations, and view them as more than just something interesting to look at, but rather a symbol for some part of our history.

Participants spent most of their time partaking in the actual conference, which is one of the most engaging, eye open-ing, and inspiring conferences in the entire country. While doing all this, they built relationships with incredible mem-bers from across the country. Many of these relationships extend years beyond the conference, proving to be some of the greatest friendships they have. WLC is one of those opportunities in which those who chose to go, come back so thankful that they did, and often wishing they could go again. To anyone considering attending, talk to your advisor and older members who have attended in the past; they would love to share a glimpse of their unique experience at such a wonderful conference. - PJ Aarsvold, PEM FFA

Providing officers with essential resources (POWER)

summer 2014camps // Conferences // FUN

This past summer, I had the opportunity to attend POWER (Providing Officers With Essential Resources) as a part of the Region III officer team. The few days we spent in Hackensack, MN were packed with many different activities. We attended sessions filled with useful information and activities that were put on by two awesome facilitators and past state officers, Tyler Warren and Chelsea Vilchis. They taught and provided us with the skills and information needed in order to have a successful year as a Region officer team.

Learning how to facilitate a presentation to a group of FFA members was just one of the many things that I will use and apply throughout the rest of my life. One of my favorite memories from POWER was definitely playing ships and sailors at sessions. When we werenʼt in sessions, we spent time bonding with our teammates and growing as a team as we planned for the upcoming year. Throughout the course of the week, we were also able to get to know officers from other regions across the state as well as the current state officers. Old friends were reunited, and many new friend-ships were created, all of which will last a lifetime. Looking back on it all, I would have to say that every aspect of POWER made an impact on me, and Iʼm sure the other region officers would have to agree.

Leah Steiner, Region III Secretary

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Scholarships to attend WLC are available from the MN FFA Foundation at: http://www.mnffafoundation.org/ beginning December 1.

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National ffa Convention| LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY |

October 29 - November 1

Over 1,000 Minnesota FFA members will converge on the National FFA Convention during the last week in October, as part of the over 57, 000 FFA members and guests from across the country. Members will participate in general sessions, competitive events,

educational tours, leadership workshops, a career show and expo, volunteer activities and much more. It is one of the largest annual student conventions in the country.

BAND Jessica Hanley, Mountain Lake – Levi Jahnke & Caitlin Oeltjenbruns, and Tri City United – Nikole Mader, have been selected to play in the National FFA Band. Levi, Caitlin, and Nikole are among the 80 FFA members selected to help bring full instrumental balance to the band. The band will perform several times at the 87th National FFA Convention, adding excitement and motivation to the sessions through their music. National FFA Band members are chosen from a pool of more than 225 applications.

TALENT Britton Pankratz of Mountain Lake will bring his box of yo-yo's to marvel the audience with his physical skill of the strung fist sized buttons as a talent act at National FFA Convention. Rebecca Dose of Jackson County Central will also bring sweet sounds with her talent. You may have seen her on a few stages at the Minnesota State Fair also!

CHORUS Academy For Sciences And Agriculture – Emily Blosberg & Winona Johnson were selected to sing in the National FFA Chorus. The choir will perform several times at the 87th National FFA Convention, adding excitement and motivation to the sessions through their music. The young musicians arrive in Louisville three days before convention begins to rehearse. Look for Emily and Winona in the choir throughout the 87th National FFA Convention!

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This year 25 Career Development Event (CDE) Teams will make the trip down to Louisville, KY to the 87th National FFA convention, here they will have a very unique opportunity to compete against members from across the country in various topics. This year’s teams include:

Agricultural Communications – Hutchinson FFA; Agricultural Issues Forum – Plainview Elgin Millville FFA; Agricultural Sales – Pipestone FFA; Agricultural Technology and Mechanical Systems - Willmar FFA FFA; Agronomy – Windom FFA; Creed Speaking - Morris Area FFA; Dairy Cattle Evaluation and Management –Caledonia FFA; Dairy Handler Activity – Mora FFA; Environmental and Natural Resources –Grand Rapids FFA; Extemporaneous Public Speaking - Staples Motley FFA; Farm Business Management – GFW Pioneer Express FFA; Floricul-

ture – Howard Lake Waverly Winsted FFA; Food Science and Technology Dassel Cokato FFA; Forestry – Grand Rapids FFA; Horse Evaluation – Chisago Lakes FFA; Job Interview - Spring Valley FFA; Livestock Evaluation - Randolph FFA; Marketing Plan – Howard

Lake Waverly Winsted FFA; Meats Evaluation and Technology – Pipestone FFA; Milk Quality and Products - Westbrook Walnut Grove FFA; Nursery/Landscape - Howard Lake Waverly Winsted FFA; Parliamentary Procedure – Zumbrota Mazeppa FFA; Poultry Evaluation –

Fulda FFA; Prepared Public Speaking – Lincoln HI FFA; Veterinary Science - Jackson County Central

CAREER DEVELOPMENT EVENT

The National Chapter Award program recognizes FFA chapters that successfuly complete a Program of Activities with activities to encourage members to grow as individuals, as a team and to serve their community.

Three star chapters: Academy for Sciences and Agriculture, Cedar Mountain, Dassel Cokato, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted, Hutchin-son, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, and Sleepy Eye.Two star chapters: Chatfield-Chosen Valley, Morris, Plainview-El-gin-Millville, Princeton, Sibley East, Springfield and Winona.One star chapters: Fertile-Beltrami, Martin County West, and Medford.

Ten national 3-star rated chapters are also eligible to complete for the National Model of Innovation Chapter Awards to showcase innovative ideas. Model of Innovation Finalists in the Student Development category are the Academy for Sciences and Agricul-ture and Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg FFA Chapters.

national Proficiency

Agri Science fair competition

Animal Systems:Div 1 – Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg FFA – Halle Walsh Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Nathan Vordeharr

Environmental Natural Resorce SystemsDiv 1 – Thief River Falls FFA – Brandon KasprickDiv 2 – Rochester FFA – Sam Woog

Food Systems Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Isabelle ForlitiDiv 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Mitchell NelsonDiv 3 - Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg FFA – Katie Krieger & Alexys Swanson

Plant Systems:Div 1 – Thief River Falls FFA – Karryn LeakeDiv 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Brady Storo

Power, Structural and Technical Systems: Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Matias CarreraDiv 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Lucas RadermacherDiv 4 Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA–Shantal Pai & Connor Pederson

Social Systems: Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Andrea BurtonDiv 4 – Forest Lake FFA – Joe Ramstad & Megan Palmer

American Star finalistsAmerican Star Farmer

Alan Barka - Litchfield FFA

American Star in AgribusinessJared Eilertson - United South Central FFA

Minnesota has 17 members that have qualified to compete at the National AgriScience Fair. Middle and high school members have conducted their own scientific research on a project related to agriculture and food science. While at convention, they will present their findings to a panel of judges. Their displays can be found during convention in the KEC South Wing C on Thurs-day and Friday during National Convention.

Throughout their Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE), agricultural education students get to apply the hands-on skills learned in class. As FFA members, agricultural education students can show their specialized skills in 49 specific areas through a proficiency application. At the National FFA Convention, 10 of Minnesota's state-winning applicants will be recognized as finalists. They are the top 4 members in their specific area. Minnesota's finalists are:Brandon Roiger in Agricultural Education; Dakota Kalis in Agricultural Mechanics Repair and Maintenance - Placement; Jared Krieger in Diversi-fied Agricultural Production; Logan Sonnek in Diversified Horticulture; Katherine Wilts in Fiber and/or Oil Crop Production; Glen Morris in Food Science and Technology; Alexus Heldt in Goat Production; Colin Wegner in Grain Production - Placement; Greta Tank in Vegetable Production; and Megan Schultz in Veterinary Science

National Chapter award

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OFFICER UPDATE

A goal of the State Officers this year is to personally reach at least 3,000 of the over 10,000 members in the state of Minnesota. We hope to surpass this goal by reaching members through chapter visits and attending chapter and region events. We are amazed by what we are seeing from Minnesota FFA members and agricultural education classes! To request a visit fill out the form at: http://goo.gl/S24951.

During the year, the Minnesota State FFA Officers get the opportunity to interact with many different FFA members and Agricultural Eduction students through chapter visits. These chapter visits consist of engaging the members and students in fun activities to teach them about many different aspects related to FFA. These aspects include opportunities they can be a part of, the benefits of various activities and how to become a better agriculture advocate because the FFA is an agriculturally based organization. This year every chapter in Regions VII and VIII, the south-east corner of the state, will receive a chapter visit from State and Region Officers.

CHAPTER VISITS

The foundation of the FFA emblem is corn symbolizing unity as a crop grown in all 50 states. While attending the State President's Conference (SPC) in Washington, D.C. for a week-long conference, we found we had a lot in common. While we never managed to grow any corn, we focused on what we had in common to improve our organization and grew ourselves during SPC. When Kyla (State Vice President) and I first landed in D.C. we couldn’t contain our excitement. Both of us had been talking about it for weeks. We still couldn’t believe that we had the opportunity to meet state officers from across the nation and play a role in planning for Nation Convention. However, that is where our real worked lied. We were there was to represent our association’s view points and select the delegate issues that would best benefit Minnesota and the organization as a whole. The delegate issues that are selected at SPC are then worked on by the 475 national delegates in Louisville at the National Convention. We also wanted to make sure that the issue that Minnesota was one of the six issues to be considered at National Convention. Minnesota proposed the delegate issue of have the National FFA Organization form conference around Production Agriculture and the science and technologies involved. While SPC both Kyla and I talked with other State Officers about our states proposal, gave testimony, and answered questions anyone had about the issue. Thankfully enough other state associations saw this as a major need for the entire organization and our issue is going to be talked about at this year’s National Convention. Also while in Washington D.C. we had the opportunity to meet with several legislators and express our passion for agricultural education. It was great to see how well recognized the FFA jacket was and how it was welcomed. Also Kyla and I had to chance to see several monuments while we were there and it truly was a humbling experience to see so many different points of America’s history in one spot. By SPC has been one of my most enjoyable experience while serving as a State Officer and it is something I won’t ever forget.ST

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- Jack Roessler, State President

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STATE FAIR MINNESOTA

The CHS Miracle of Birth Center is a facility run by several partnering groups at the Minnesota State Fair that engages fair-goers in the birth of various farm animals. The Minnesota FFA Association partners with the University of Minnesota’s Veterinarian program, Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association and the Minnesota State Fair. The four work together to illustrate to fairgoers where young animals come from, and also that the agriculturalists working with these animals care about the well-being of each one they come in contact with. This partnership is a way to show this great care that is taken because of the roles of each partner. Both the veterinarians and the veterinary students work together to insure that each birth goes well and does not have any complications. Also the state fair provides plentiful feed for each animal. The FFA members take care of feeding and the overall cleanliness of each animal. One of the barnyard technicians, Abbey Weninger, talked about her experience this year. “My favorite part was being able to advocate and converse with many types of people! I was able to make an impact in people’s lives and made a difference in their views of farming and agriculture.” These are all ways that the CHS Miracle of Birth Center interacts with fair-goers which is why it was selected as the WCCO People’s Choice for Best Animal Exhibit at this year’s fair.

Miracle of BirthCenter

480+ FFA members competed at the Minnesota State

Fair!

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Region ReportsI

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III

IV

The Region I FFA theme this year is, “Spark Your Never-ending Passion.” This past August, we held our first annual Region 1 Region Leadership Conference. At this conference, chap-ter officers bonded with their team, learned about the importance and duties of their offices, and connected with other officers while making pizzas. On September 17th, Green-hands and chapter officers went to Maplelag Resort for officer demonstrations and work-shops. There were a variety of workshops. Some region officers put workshops on and we had other companies such as Lee Vet Clinic and FSA. The Greenhands learned more about FFA and sparked their passion for it. Now the region officers are preparing for our winter leadership conference coming up in February.

Region Leadership Conference (RLC) was a big success for Region II. We had many chapter officers come for our 2 day retreat at camp Vanasek. We had different sessions ranging from official dress, how to recruit and maintain members, AET, POA, what the FFA jacket really means, all the way to social media etiquette. Along with those sessions, we had many team development activities and officer breakouts. October 8th was a big day for the new members, Region II officers held the 2014 Region II Fall Rally where there were 202 officers, members, and advisors present. For our new members we had different sessions that they attended including; official dress, SAE’s, the meaning of the emblem, CDE jeopardy, natural resources in Region 2, attitude=100% and the opportunities FFA has. By the end of Fall Rally many Region II chapter officers and new members learned more about what FFA has to offer them and their chapters.

Region III FFA was thrilled to host 160 junior and senior high school students at our Fall Rally and COLT sessions. Three state officers attended Fall Rally to inform students about CDE’s (Career Development Events), the diversity in agriculture, and the opportunities one has with the Minnesota FFA Association such as Greenhand Camp (SGLC). Region III officers led the COLT sessions and taught the local chapter officers about leadership and how they can bring those leadership skills back to their chapter. The three main topics taught at COLT were: How to Make Goals and Achieve them, Using Media to Spread the Word of FFA and Agriculture, The Importance of the Blue Jacket, and The Char-acters of a Leader. Region III had a great turnout and we would like to thank everyone who attended. We would especially like to thank our local sponsors who made this event possi-ble. We invite everyone to like our Facebook page, Region III FFA, and follow our twitter page, @RegionIIIFFA.

This year has been off to a great start thanks to the wonderful officer team that has been instated this year. Given this year’s theme, which is “Determine Your Influence” , Region IV’s Explore FFA Day for greenhands on September 23rd had multiple activities for the students to do in order to see how they were influenced and could be an influence to others. There were also multiple awesome workshops and a CDE sampler, so Greenhands left with a ton of great advice to start the year off right. Region IV members will have another opportunity to learn how to determine their influence at a new event, the Region Leadership Confer-ence on February 13th. This will be a day when members will have a chance to learn about what it means to be a leader in their chapters, and to have fun doing it! Region IV officers have been busy planning great activities for the region members, and we can’t wait to see how the rest of this great year will go!

Submitted by: Bethany Fenske, Reporter

Submitted by: Amy Jobe, Reporter

Submitted by:Klarissa Walvatne, Reporter

Submitted by:Winona Johnson, Reporter

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Region ReportsV

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VII

VIII.

Animal Systems:Div 1 – Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg FFA – Halle Walsh Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Nathan Vordeharr

Environmental Natural Resorce SystemsDiv 1 – Thief River Falls FFA – Brandon KasprickDiv 2 – Rochester FFA – Sam Woog

Food Systems Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Isabelle ForlitiDiv 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Mitchell NelsonDiv 3 - Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg FFA – Katie Krieger & Alexys Swanson

Plant Systems:Div 1 – Thief River Falls FFA – Karryn LeakeDiv 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Brady Storo

Power, Structural and Technical Systems: Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Matias CarreraDiv 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Lucas RadermacherDiv 4 Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA–Shantal Pai & Connor Pederson

Social Systems: Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Andrea BurtonDiv 4 – Forest Lake FFA – Joe Ramstad & Megan Palmer

Region V FFA is “Taking it to the Limit” this year and kicked-off the year on September 24th with our first leadership day. Greenhands in the Spotlight (GITS) and Chapter Leaders Conference (CLC) are held in conjunction with each other at Prairie Woods Environmental Learning Center (PWELC) in Spicer. Region officers led workshops for Greenhands on SAEs, CDEs, and Official Dress. The Greenhands also got to explore the ropes course deep in the forest at PWELC. Chapter leaders from across the region worked with Minnesota FFA National Officer Candidate, Heidi Sloot, and Minnesota FFA State Sentinel, Dalton Kampsen, for a day filled with leadership training. Along with members from across the region, we also had five students join us from West Virginia who were visiting KMS on a chapter exchange. GITS and CLC went great and the region officers are looking forward to our winter leadership conference, Leading the Challenge (LTC). The Region V Officer team wants to challenge all of our members to “Take it to the Limit” this year and “GO ALL OUT!”

The Region VI FFA has been very busy! Region VI just completed our fall Greenhand Day and Chapter Officer Workshops on September 24, 2014. We had outstanding participation at our conference. We had 444 Greenhands, 141 Chapter Officers, numerous CDE presenters, and chapter advisors present. The officer team was busy with Greenhands working with them on FFA Basics, SAE Development, Official Dress, and opportunities in the region. Our Greenhands were also busy with volunteers from around the region teaching them about various CDE’s. Our Chapter Officer Workshop was very productive as well. We had the honor of having State Officers, Brady Wulf and Kyla Mauk, join the Chapter Officers. Teams worked to develop team mission statements and planned for their year of service. We worked to implement our region theme of “Breaking Barriers” by getting our Greenhands and Chapter Officers to know other members from around the region and to familiarize themselves with what our organization is all about. Now, we continue with our year by starting to make visits to chapters around the region in hopes to get members to “Break Barriers.”

Region VII FFA is very excited for this year as we are entering our busy time of the year. Region and State Officers have traveled around and visited 14 chapters thus far and will continue to visit chapters throughout the year to connect with students. On October 9, 2014 we held our annual Greenhand Day with nearly 150 members in attendance. We provided Greenhands throughout the region with oppor-tunities they have within the FFA and how they can develop their leadership potential. Soon after we will be holding our Fall Leadership Day at South Central College in Mankato on November 14 to bring members from across the region to continue developing their leadership potential and give them an insight of the possibilities they have within agricultural. Here, we will also be completing service projects in order for our members to be servant leaders in our community. With our 2014-2015 theme of “The Time Is Now,” we are making sure every member knows that they can make a difference in their lives and the lives of others around them. Region VII has outstanding membership and we are continuing to develop our members to make a difference in the world today!

On September 17th Region VIII hosted a Fall Leadership Day. Region VIII has hosted this for many years and every year it is a great success. We had more than 220 members attend our 2014 Fall Lead-ership Day this year. We hosted three Greenhand workshops, three workshops for chapter leaders and had multiple tours these members could attend when not in workshops. These tours were Horticul-ture technology, St. Joseph implement, Salem Glenn Vineyard, SEMA Agriculture technology. We released our theme at Fall Leadership Day with a video that we showed directly after the opening ceremonies. Our theme for this year is "Discover" and we integrated that throughout our workshops like, "Discover your Potential" and "Discovering the Blue Jacket", our Greenhand workshops allowed us to talk to new and prospective members about coming to our Regional Greenhand Camp in December.

Submitted by:Kayla Kutzke, Reporter

Submitted by:Emily Williamson, Reporter

Submitted by:Liz Theis, Reporter

Submitted by:McKayla Wingert, Reporter

The Alumni ConnectionMinnesota FFA Alumni has had a successful year. The beginning of the year saw the induction of eight well deserving individuals into the Minnesota FFA Hall of Fame. The members of the 2014 Hall of Fame class included: Val Aarsvold, Altura; Kevin Dahlman, Cokato; Greg Gosen, Albert Lea; Joel Larsen, Savage; Dr. Allen S. Levine, Mendota Heights; Representative Rod Hamilton, Mountain Lake; Jim Molenaar, New London; and Dr. Deane A. Turner (deceased), St. Paul. Minnesota FFA is very lucky to have such outstanding individuals who are committed to the future of agriculture and the future of youth involvement in FFA.

National FFA Convention is quickly approaching. It is hard to explain National Convention accurately to someone who has never attended; it is something that really needs to be experienced. Minnesota FFA Alumni gives school administrators a chance to experience National FFA Convention. Chapters can apply for a “Bring your Administrator to National Convention” grant. This grant allows for a superintendent, principal, or school board member to travel to National Convention with their FFA chapter. It allows the administration to see and experience all that FFA has to offer. It allows them to see why students are leaving school and ensures that they are experiencing something worthwhile by attending National Convention. The goal is for school administra-tors to develop a better understanding, appreciation, and value for FFA. Applications for grants have now closed and chapters have been selected.However, watch for the grant application again in the spring for next year.

Mark your calendars for the 2015 Minnesota FFA Alumni Annual Conference. It will be held in the St. Cloud area on Saturday, March 7th. Stay tuned for more details regarding the exact location and program informa-tion. Annual Conference is a great opportunity to connect with FFA members and supporters from across the state. It also provides valuable workshops and dynamic presenters. You won’t want to miss this event!

Written By: Lisa Roker

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STAY CONNECTEDMN FFA ON SOCIAL MEDIA

#FFAchat is back! After a successful year of #FFAchat, we decided to continue the chat on Twitter. Every other Sunday, @MNFFA hosts #FFAchat. This year we’ve formed questions around the Program of Acitivies (POA) and focus on what members do in their own chapter. The chat helps engage with one another by having members from different states join the conversation. Check out twitter (@MNFFA) to see if #FFAchat is this weekend!

Bi-Weekly - Sunday @ 7pm CST

The last week of every month, @MNFFA hosts a instagram photo contest - Join the fun and your photo might get featured on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook!

Use the hashtag #MNFFAChallenge.

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Tell us what is happening in your chapter! We would love to share it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or in our next news-letter! Send your ideas to minnesotaffa@gmail.com or tag us @MNFFA!

Living to Serve. That is something many FFA members across the state take to heart. It is remarkable to see the passion members have to serve others that are in need. From road side pickups to packing food. FFA members will do just about every service project under the sun. To recognize chapters across the state a new addition to the MN FFA Facebook page has been made. We now have Service Spotlights. If a service

project is brought to our attention, then we are more than happy to give them to recognition they deserve. Shoot us an email at minnesotaffa@gmail.com with a description of what the chapter did and the members involved with the process.However, we know that our FFA members continue doing the amazing things they

do without any recognition that doesnʼt mean they should!

Service spotlight

www.facebook.com/mnffa

The Minnesota State FFA Officer Team created a weekly Agricultural Educator Highlight to post on the Minnesota FFA Association Facebook page to recognize outstanding agricultural educators. Outlining where each teacher went to school and a quote about their experiences as a teacher, the weekly postʼs purpose is

to thank and recognize agricultural educators for their hard work and dedication to educating students about agriculture and serving as an outstanding FFA advisor.

agricultural educator highlight

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