CHAPTER SCOOP

MembersofJasper,Missouri,

FFA

^will

converttheempty lotacrossfromtheir schoolintoacommunitypark.

Trick-or-treatonHalloweenbutasking forcanned foodinsteadofcandy wasthe goalofCeres,California,Chapter.

Sutton,Nebraska,

FFA

workedwith the

Young

FarmerChaptertoserveapork barbecue duringOldTrustyDays.

FFA

uses the

money

togotonationalconven- tion.

Gilbert, Arizona

FFA

celebratedits

60th yearandpaidtribute tothecharter

members

from 1930 in the chapter's newsletter. Collinsville, Texas, is cel- ebratingits50thyear.

BryceShiimmway,NathanMackayand Jesse

WUeman

restored a tree planter machinefortheirEdgerton.Wisconsin, FFA.Thechapterwilluse ittoprovide treeplanting services asa fundraiser ac- tivity.

When

any

member

of the Pierce County,Georgia,

FFA

sellsover$100of fruit,themembersgets halfoftheprofit fromallheorshesells,accordingtoMatt Waller, president.

Eachyearthe Greenville,Ohio,

FFA

stages a"tractor-cade"tocommemorate NationalFarmSafetyWeek.Nine

mem-

bersdrovetractorstoschoolduringthis

weekofsafetyawareness.

Arlington,Ohio,

FFA

sold61 barbe- cuemeals beforeaschoolfootballgame.

Lotsofnewsitemscoming inabout attending

Made

For Excellenceconfer- encesintheir states like

Denham

Springs, Louisiana.

FordCentral

FFA

inPiper City,Illinois, joinedthecountyFarm Bureauinclean- ing debrisinfieldsand alonghighways

afteratornadostrucknearPlainfield.

Anderson, California, Chapterplans tosell catfishin theircommunityafter they get theirproduction rolling. They havesetup aquaculturetanksinthegreen- house.

Avoidthe Rush

Mansfield, Texas, encourages its

memberstoplace orders for

FFA

clothes andpersonalitemsonacombinedchapter orderfromthe

FFA

Supply Serviceearly intheschoolyearforitsmembers.This ensuresmemberswillbe wearingthe

new

clothessoonafterschoolbegins.

BartlettYancey

FFA

inYanceyville, NorthCarolina, hasaweeklyradioshow on local

AM

^station

WYNC.

John Blackwell, JenniferWebster andPatrick Vernon,hostsoftheshow,areincharge of everythingfromcollectingweeklynews

tointerviewingguestsand providingthe show'sthememusic.

Jones,Oklahoma,

FFA

israffling half- a-hog butcheredandwrappedfor theindi- vidual winners.

ChristinaLope:sellsfresheggsfrom her poultry projecteveryTuesdayafter school.Shealwayssellsout.

Bronson, Florida,

FFA

^isselling the irregular shaped tomatoes from Mike Schenk's greenhouse.Thecropisgrown hydroponically.

The school opener hostedby Alva,

Oklahoma, FFA

wasanicecreamsocial.

Theyhad 120guest includingmembers,

allteachers,schoolboardmembers and parents for

homemade

icecreamandcake.

Hatch,

New

Mexico,

FFA

workedLa- bor

Day

weekendparkingcars,settingup chairs andgettingwetintheirdunking boothattheannualHatch ChileFestival.

Gradeschoolkids gettoenter theTo- ledo,Washington,

FFA

petting corralif they bringalongacan offood.

FFA

con- tributesthecannedgoodtoa localfood

Lots ofreaders sentinnewsitems for Scoopaboutsuccessfulcountyorstate fair activities.

We

usuallydon't usefairitems sincemostevery chapterand

many mem-

bers areinvolvedone

way

oranotherata fair.Thanksforkeepingusinformed.Send ussomeothernews now.

30 FFANewHorizons

Sham

Bairnby.Mercwy recordingarlisiandpro rodeo

cowhoy,with hisrape,!

"

giiilar,andolher toolsoffl trade:aWrc Brushjxipper" sh pink,,black,andgreyan

BlackCowhoyCut'"''jacu

1

A^stern ^original wears a^stern ^original.

Cowboy

Cut Jeans

&

^Shtts

Common ^Ground

The sustainable agriculture

movement matures.

When

scene,

^LISA

she^firstwas^arrivedwarmly em-^onthe bracedbysome,butgiventhe coldshoulderbyothers.

LISA

(Low-Input Sustainable Agri- culture) is a term coined by the U.S.

Department of Agriculture that

many

thought was a system of farming that attemptedtolowerfarminputssuchas pesticidesandfertilizer.

Many

^fearedit wouldbeathrowbacktothe"olddays" of more handlaborand loweryields.

Itseemedthatwhilefarmersandin- dustryexpertswerearguing overthemer-

itsoflow-input, theyweremissingthe mostimportantpart

—

theobjectiveof achievingamoresustainable agriculture.

JoeNevilleofCaseInternational, is

one of

many

agindustryexperts

who

has takenabroaderview ofthesustainable agriculture movement. They recently gathered at an international forum on sustainable agricultureorganizedbythe National Association of Conservation Districts.

"A

sustainable agricultureisa goalnearlyeveryone can agree on,"said Neville."Ourdefinitionofsustainability requires efficientandprudent use ofpur- chasedinputsandnaturalresources,con- tinued profitability for the farmer and protectionoftheenvironment."

Neville pointsoutthatfarmersarenot goingtoadoptpractices thatwon't

make

them money.

"Any

system ofagriculture thatsacrificesyieldswillnotbesuccess- fulintoday's globaleconomy."

PaulO'Connell,deputyadministrator forthe

USDA

CooperativeStateResearch Service,andagovernmentleaderinthe sustainable agriculturemovement,agrees.

"Ifit'snot profitable,it'snotsustainable.

Many

people have misunderstood the

LISA

program.It'sa researchandeduca- tionprogramproviding choicestofarm- ers.They'retheones

who make

thedeci- sions. Ifit'snotprofitable, they're not goingto selectany oftheendresultsofthe research.We'renotgoingto shift to this typeofagricultureunlessitmakessense to farmers and unless the markets are there.Thiswillnothappenovernight."

The wholetoneofthesustainable agri- culture issue has

moved

from con- frontational to co- operative involve- ment.Eventhefer- tilizer industry, whichstands to lose sales if farmers adoptmoresustain- able practices, is

warming up^tothe idea.

"We

have

come

through the

_____^.^_^_

debateonlow-input

andourenergies are turningtowarddis- cussing, researching and implementing anagriculture thatistrulysustainable,"

saidGaryMyers,presidentofTheFer- tilizerInstitute."Thesustainableagsys- temofthe future will rely as

much

on informationasonproducts."

For example,asfarmersbetterunder- stand

how

nutrients arecycled andre- cycledthroughthesoil,theywillbebetter ableto managetheirinputssonoextra nutrients areapplied.Thisincludesseeing manurenot as awaste butasafertilizer,

andmeasuringthe effectivenessofcrop

residues asfertilizer.

More

accuratesoil testscanalsoprovidetheproducer with betterinformationtodecrease fertilizer levels.

AccordingtoNeville, some farmers areslowlystartingtoworkthesemethods intotheirfarmmanagementplans."There

isahardy band ofinnovators

who

are willingtoacceptthe risksof

new

farming methods. They're lookingatthebig pic- tureofrisingchemicalandfertilizercosts andthefutureoftheenvironment.These are thepeoplewe're keeping our eyeson.

Theirdistinguishingtraitisoutstanding managementskill.Theysoil testandscout theircropstopinpointfertilityneedsand pestproblems.They're notabandoning theuseofpurchasedinputs,but theyare movingtowardtargeted applications."

Thesustainable agriculture

movement

grewoutof agrowingpublicconcern over the amountofpesticidesand fertilizers beingusedinagriculture.That environ- mental concern continues to threaten tighter government regulation on the farmingpractices.

James Moseley of the

USDA

Soil Conservation ServiceandForestService, says that there is a political angle to sustainability. "I believe you and I as farmersandranchershave always thought of ourselvesasconservationistsandgood stewards oftheland,"hesaid. "Itshocks ustobe paintedasthe"enemy."

What we

wanttoaccomplishistoproduce foodand fiberfortheworld's populationinaman- nerthatenhances our natural resource

^_^_^^^^^^^

^{base, rather than}

detract from it,

while allowing farmers and ranchersto

make

a living."

"The agricul- ture

community

hasto

make

a de- cision. Either

we

participate in the process,focusour

^__^^^___..^_

^{attentiononfind-}

ing desirable solu- tions to these environmentalissues,or stand back, complain about it, and let othersdoitforus."

USDA's

O'Connell saysthat ifyou can't fight the environmentalists,talkwith them.

"We

can'tdrawlinesbetweenagri- cultureandpeopleconcerned aboutthe environment.

We

mustbuild bridges. In thisissue,

we

havemorein

common

than

we

haveatodds.Thereareawholelot

more consumers and urban people out therethanthere areinvolvedinagricul- tureand

we

havetofinda

way

towork

withthem." ^•••

"The sustainable ag

system ofttie future will rely as much ^or)

ir)formation as on

products."

32 FFANewHorizons

FinancialAid

(Continuedfrom Page25)

early as possible.Thefinaldeadlinefor the 1991-92 school yearis

May

1,1991.

Another federal grant isthe

SEOG,

Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant.Althoughthisisafederalprogram,

itisadministeredbythe individual col- leges, so you will apply through your college's financial aidoffice.Thesegrants areawarded upto$4,000 peryear.

For informationonfederalgrantand loanprograms, write for the freebook.

TheStudentGuide

—

FiveFederal Pro- grams, Dept.DEA-84,Pueblo, Colorado 81009.For answerstoyour questionson federalprograms,calltheFederalStudent Aid Information Center at 1-800-333-

INFO

from9a.m.to5:30 p.m. Eastern time,

Monday

throughFriday.

Work-Study Programs

Thethirdcategoryoffinancialaidis

work-study programs, administered by youruniversity.Based onyourfinancial need, youwill beallotted anumberof workhours persemesterandassignedto acampusjob.Thepay isfederalmini-

mum

wage,andthejobsusuallykeepthe sameholidayscheduleasyourschool.

Loans

Loansare often a student'slastchoice offinancialaidoptionsbecausea college loanwillhavetoberepaidwithinterest.

There are several federal loan pro- gramstohelpyoumeetcollegeexpenses.

The PerkinsLoan, upto $4,500 during yourfirsttwoyearsincollegeor vocational school,isadministeredbyyourschool's financialaidoffice.Withalow5percent interest rate, the payments begin nine monthsafteryougraduateordropbelow half-time status. You'll have upto 10 years to repay the loan. Similarly, the Staffordloanawards upto$2,625ayear during yourfirst twoyears ofcollege.

Interest ratesarehigher,usually 8percent duringthefirstfouryearsofrepayment and 10percentafter that.

PLUS

loansand

SLS

loans are

made

byfinancial institutionsandbackedbythe federalgovernment.

PLUS

loans are for parents

who

want to finance their children's education. SLS, or Supple- mentalLoansforStudents, are

made

to students.Bothloans are forupto$4,000

a year,andtheinterest rateiscurrently12 percent.

Military

Assistance

Themilitaryislookingforafew good

men

andwomen,andiswillingtopaya large partof^theircollegeexpenses.

Forexample,theArmy'sReserve Of- ficers'TrainingCorps

(ROTC)

program offersa4-yearscholarshipthatpaysmost

tuitionandeducationalexpenses, provides aflatrateforbooks,suppliesand equip- ment,plusanallowance ofupto$1,000 foreach year oftheaward. In return,a student takes Military Science courses rightalong withhisregular college cur- riculumandagreestoaccept an 8-year militaryservice obligation.Theisobliga- tion

may

be fulfilledby serving2 to4 years onactivedutyandthe rest inthe NationalGuardor

Army

Reserve,orby serving 8 yearsintheGuardorReserve witha shortactove dutyperiod.

All branches ofthe armed services havesimilarcollege assistanceprograms.

Startearlyandsystematically work your

way

throughthe paperworkahead and you willbe ahead ofthe

game

of financingyoureducation. ^•••

Washington apples

mean ^{healthier sales}

America's favorite fruit is a natural for fund raising.

While many people can

pass

up

candy,

magazines or

soap,

few can

say

no

to crisp, juicyapples fresh

from

the

orchards ofWashington

state.

The

pick of the

crop

isavailable for

your club

to sellright

now- Red

Delicious,

Golden

Delicious

or Granny

Smith.

Justcall

or

writetothe

address below

forafree

brochure with complete

details

on how

to

make your

fund-raisingeffortthe

most

profitable ever.

Washington Apple Commission

Fund-Raising Division

P.O.

Box

18,

Wenatchee, WA 98807 Phone:(509)663-9600

The

OriginalHealthFood.

strategy for Success

Nation introduced to Strategic Plan

during "Together We Can" teleconference.

By Andrew

Markwart

The

^{faces ofadozen} agriculture teachers and their bosses were glued to the flickering glow of three televisionsets atthe

Ramada

InninWoodstock,Virginia.Thepeople onthe screenweretalkingabouta revo- lution.

They,^likethousands ofother agricul- ture teachersand school administrators aroundthecountry,were being introduced totheStrategicPlanforAgriculturalEdu- cationthroughasatellitevideoconference heldontheevening ofSeptember24.

The StrategicPlanis theresultofa nationalsummit on agricultural educa- tionorganizationsheldinFebruaryand May,1989.The^National

FFA

Organiza- tionisoneina family ofnearly adozen agriculturaleducation organizations. In thepast,eachgrouphadtheir

own

agenda andtherewaslittlecoordinationbetween groups.

Like a large corporation calling its

many

divisionstogether for future plan- ning, the StrategicPlanforAgricultural Education attemptsto

make

the"agricul- tural education corporation" run more effectivelyand withmoreenthusiasmby focusingon

common

goals.TheNational Council for Agricultural Education, an umbrellaorganization for the differentag educationgroups,isresponsible for co- ordinating the plan.

Attheheartoftheplanaresevengoals.

Some

ofthegoalsaffirmwhatiscurrently being done. Othersoffera challenge.For example. Goal 1 states:

To

update in- structioninagricultureandexpandpro- gramsaboutagriculture.Itsexplanation says,

"We

seektoprovideboth:

A

com- prehensive contemporary program of educationfor thecareer-boundagriculture student;andabasicprogramaboutagri- culture forallstudentsinthenation."

AccordingtoLarry Case,national

FFA

advisor,"Theplanismeanttobeafocus.

It'salotlikeyoungpeoplesettinggoals forthemselves.Theprocessofgoal-set- tingistoassessyour valuesandthen base your goals on those values. Then, the goals really areimportanttoyou

—

you areworkingfromthe inside out."

He

says that goals,whether personal or organizational, help people see more

clearlyandfeelbetteraboutwhattheyare doing. "Once you decide your goals,"

saysCase,"youstartseeingtheworldin lightof'howcanIusethisresourceto accomplishthat goal'versus nothaving anyideaofwhereyou'regoingandevery- thinglooksgoodtoyou. Theplanis

about aligning re- sourcestopursueand captureyourgoal."

He

says thatan importantpartof theplanisthatit

encourages

peopletoplot their

own course

and

make

their

own

deci- sionsinsteadoflook- ingtoothers for direction.

"Itisnotacookbook.Itdoes not

tellyoustepbystep

how

youaregoingto accomplish your goals. It'smore ofa lighthouse.

You

setyourcourse,and by comingtogetherwithother people,you accomplishyourgoals."

CaseoftenquotesPresidentKennedy's

"wechoosetogotothe

moon"

speechas anexampleofwhata statedgoalormis- sioncando."Kennedy had noidea

how we

wouldget to themoon,buthe

knew we

could.Itjusttookalotofcreativepeople focusingon onegoal."

The

FFA

hasworked onitsspecific,or tacticalplan, thatalignsitsgoalswiththe StrategicPlan's goals.

Many

stateshave donethesame.

An

introduction to the StrategicPlan states,"Changeisrampantinagriculture, andagriculturaleducationmustkeep pace orbecomean obsolete remnantofthe past. Ifthe agriculturaleducation

commu-

nityistomeetthechallengeofchange,

we

must answertwo questions:

'Who

are we?'and'Whatisour purpose?'"

How

doesthisallapplyto

FFA mem-

bers?"Ithinkitisimportantforstudents tounderstand educationandag education issues astheyimpactontheircommunity,

stateandnation," saysCase."Iwouldbet thatonce they catchthevisionandunder- stand the Strategic Plan, thatthey will have morecreative ideasthan anybody wouldhave timeor

money

to getdone.

He

challenges

FFA

memberstofocus chapter activities to achieve the Strategic Plan's goals. For example,oneofthe goals is to "develop the wholeperson."Case asks,

"how

do the

members

focus the chapter'sprogramofac- tivitiesondevelopingthe wholeperson?" There will beas

many

differentanswers as there are

FFA

chapters.

He

saysthatteachers willhave to startthinking differentlyabout whatthey teach their students. "I think

many

times,vocationaleduca- torshave focusedtoo

much

ondevel- opingapersontofilla specificslotinan industrial machineera. Inthe

modem,

fast-changingpace,

we

needtobedevel- opingindividuals that areadaptabletofill

any kind ofroleandprovidethenecessary thinking and leadership to

move

our economy andsocietyalong."

Caseexpectstheplanto "foster the kind ofboldthinkingandcreativity thatis requiredtoaddressthechanging environ- ment.Theissueis

now

howfasfwechange insteadofif

we

change. That'sthe issue."

Rallyingaroundthephrase,"Together

We

Can,"thegroupsinag educationare joining forcestoeffectpositivechange.

Theplansums upthatspiritsaying, "there isnoquestionthatagriculturaleducation will achievetogether what none of^its componentscould achievealone." •••

Forafreecopyofthe Strategic Planfor AgriculturalEducation,send a 9x12 self-

addressed, stamped envelope to: The Council, P.O. Box 15035. Alexandria,VA, 22309-0035.

34 FFANewHorizons

fiZT