From tractor parades to helping feed the needy through Meals from the Heartland, Iowa’s FFA members are celebrating the agricultural education organization this week through participating in a host of events.
Taylor Adams, an instructor with the Webster City FFA chapter, says she’s long had an interest in the group.
“I’ve wanted to be a teacher since I was little, and once I got involved in FFA and ag throughout my high school career,” Adams says, “I knew that I wanted to continue to share my passion and teach my potential students in the future.”
The chapter’s president, Ethan Harms, says one of the false myths about FFA is that it’s only open to students who live on farms.
Harms notes there are plenty of chapters in big cities and each member takes on what’s known as a Supervised Agricultural Experience, or SAE.
“FFA is for all. Everybody has an SAE project, no matter how big or small in our ag classes,” Harms says. “It can range from managing your household pets to managing 100 head of livestock. Everybody has an SAE project.”
There are 20,000 FFA members in Iowa, with more than a million nationwide. FFA will mark its centennial in 2028.
(By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City)