Model of Innovation Finalists East Clinton FFA Chapter, Ohio Franklin FFA Chapter, Nebraska Laurel-Concord FFA Chapter, Nebraska Norco FFA Chapter, California. Peoria FFA Chapter, Arizona Perrydale FFA Chapter, Oregon Ravenna FFA Chapter, Nebraska Seneca FFA Chapter, Illinois Weyauwega-Fremont FFA Chapter,. As a way to raise agricultural awareness in southern Oklahoma and northern Texas, chapter members produced a series of 162 television segments. The agricultural communications class prepared scripts, filmed, edited and scheduled segments that aired twice weekly on KSWO, an ABC affiliate in Lawton, Oklahoma.
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The chapter provided a 35-acre land lab to promote student engagement, growth and development of agricultural career skills. Members wanted to learn how to efficiently plant and harvest no-till soybeans. Area ranches and a representative of a local genetics company provided the cattle and materials needed for the workshop.
To help members finance their educations beyond high school, the chapter established a scholarship program with an auction. In addition to these local scholarships, seniors are encouraged to apply for the National FFA Scholarship Program. Members used materials donated from area horticultural businesses to build their design, which was named best of show.
The department hosted a Gallup Strengths Finders profile assessment for high school staff, administrators, Board of Education members, non-agricultural seniors, and the board of directors and five employees of the local Farmers Coop. The chapter's goal was to unite all schools in the Yelm community through science, career exploration and FFA.
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As a way to help children understand agriculture and its role in their lives, department members worked with FCCLA members and ecology students to host an educational event for area second and third graders. To engage members and develop career skills, officers developed a program where students collected and analyzed local water samples. Collaboratively, 54 members correctly collected and analyzed samples and determined the amount of nitrates, chlorides, iron and dissolved oxygen in each sample.
Chapter members competed against students from other area schools in the local Home Builders' Association landscape design competition. This enabled community members to identify their personal strengths and encouraged them to apply these strengths in their lives and careers.
Chapter Development Quality Standards
Akins and his teaching partner, Larry Reed, apply this concept to all chapter activities. To increase public awareness of FFA, the chapter produced a weekly television segment called “FFA in Action” for KSWO-ABC, Channel 7, in Lawton, Oklahoma. The team of chapter officers formed committees and engaged many chapter members. in planning, organizing and conducting the annual parent-member banquet.
To encourage eighth graders to enroll in agriculture and join FFA, the chapter hosted a leadership night. As a result of this effort, the chapter recruited 33 percent of the eighth grade class into FFA. It increases FFA knowledge, builds leadership skills and helps develop the future of the chapter.
To promote a positive image of the FFA, the chapter hosted a hypnotist show and advertised it as "Having Fun with FFA." The chapter received more than 50 thank you notes from faculty and students at Apollo.
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More than 1,400 students and teachers attended the show, which was also broadcast on closed-circuit television in the school. FFA members invested more than 100 hours in the school's urban park and wetland area. Members collected a dairy calf, a beef calf, a pony, ducks, lambs, goats, pigs, rabbits, turkeys, chicks and chickens for exhibits at the county fair, the Fifties Day Festival and the Indy 500 Festival.
They collected 300 old batteries for proper disposal, and collected and disposed of more than 75 scrap cars. The members took water samples from various farmers' properties, sent them for analysis and provided the results to each farmer. Throughout the year, FFA members work with students, teachers, administrators and the community.
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In addition to the money raised, members benefited from the experience through everything they learned about running livestock. The funds will be used for travel expenses so members can participate in career development events and the FFA state conference. Each member was responsible for marketing greenhouse plants, raising money and delivering the plants.
All members participated in the corn feed and the chapter raised more than $2,800 from the event. Members were challenged to have at least one dollar left at the end of the activity. Based on this success, members created a business plan to expand the greenhouse and presented it to the school board.
10,000 in grant funds to add another 12 feet to the greenhouse and purchase germination chambers, pneumatic seeders, drip irrigation, soil sterilizer and a light meter. To raise money to build a new agricultural laboratory, the department members organized and conducted a consignment auction.
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FFA members worked with the school's student council, FBLA, FCCLA, VICA, STAR and FCA chapters to host activities. One result of this collaboration was the hosting of an all-school assembly for students in grades 7-12. To earn money for the FFA scholarship fund, the chapter worked with alumni members to host a soup and sandwich social.
To provide a real environment for students to apply their skills, the chapter established a golf course. The golf course is used by many, including the girls' golf team and special education classes.
Community Development
Members worked together to collect food and clothing donations from agricultural businesses, community members and other FFA chapters throughout Oregon. The collected food and clothing were provided to agricultural communities in the Klamath Basin and local food banks. As part of the Pork for People program, members collected donations from community members and area businesses to help pay for feed and processing costs.
Chapter members organized a holiday lunch and a spring trip and invited friends to the retirement home.
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Chapter members have set a goal to improve the environment by restoring the local flood control channel to its original condition by working with the Maricopa County Floodplain and the Westmarc and Millenium FFA chapters. The chapter took nursery-propagated cottonwood cuttings and planted 50 trees along the flood control channel. The local tree committee helps to find a place to plant and provides trees to plant.
Chapter members set a goal of cleaning 31 miles along the road around their town, involving 95 percent of the school's student body and completing the task in one hour. More than 440 students, 54 faculty, 12 FFA alumni, 8 bus drivers and other volunteers worked together to make the event a success. The event ended with a picnic for all schools in the park served by volunteers.
Members worked with the local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office, the local extension service and local tree growers. In addition, members of the greenhouse class grew and planted more than 230 annual plants in decorative beds around the school.
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Members donate pumpkins to the zoo for decoration during ZooBoo. Members prepared the track, maintained the grandstands and improved the facilities to ensure a safe environment. Classes were held at off-road, pro-stock and pro-field events and attracted over 110 participants.
Parking for the school's graduation ceremony had been chaotic, and members wanted to encourage more elderly and disabled citizens to attend. In response, they organized a parking program and helped elderly and disabled citizens park their vehicles. To raise funds for local charities, the department hosted a coat check at local basketball games and dances.
As part of the chapter's annual food drive, members place a shopping bag on the doorstep of every home in the city. The instructions in each bag asked residents to fill the bag with food and leave it at the door later in the week for chapter members to pick up.
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The chapter hosted a lamb camp to promote a positive image of FFA in the community and teach youth about agriculture. Camp counselors, along with two students, took care of their lamb for a week. Students learned how to care for lambs, including washing, leading, showing, shearing, feeding and grooming the lambs.
Participating farms provided behind-the-scenes tours for the community, while FFA members presented agricultural literacy information. Chapter members worked with contacts at KSWO-Channel 7 to produce a website listing 88 chapters in the station's viewing area. A different chapter was highlighted each week, along with a member of the week, a photo album and an events calendar on the channel's homepage.
After receiving the proper instruction and prosthetic devices, they should try to perform their daily tasks. Together with the local FCCLA club, the department hosted a day on the farm for area youth.
More Agricultural Awareness Ideas
The chapter hosted a career day to increase student awareness of career opportunities in agriculture. They sponsored dances throughout the year for special events and holidays as a way to increase the chapter's treasury. The chapter offered a hunter safety course for its members interested in wildlife and hunting.
The chapter worked with the local chamber of commerce to plan, organize and implement Farm City Day for the province's second grade students. In cooperation with the local Farm Bureau, the section sponsored the local Agriculture Day essay contest. Start by using the National Chapter Award video to introduce members to the process.
The chapter organizes standing, executive, and special committees to address areas of student, chapter, and community development. Identify specific goals that are measurable and realistic; develop a plan that is educational and meets the goals the chapter has set; and evaluate the results achieved and the benefits experienced by members.
