Winter Newsletter 2014-15

National FFA Convention RecapMINNESOTA FFA TODAY

PUBLISHED BY THE MINNESOTA FFA ASSOCIATION

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

FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by de-veloping their potential for premier leadership, personal growth

and career success through agricultural education.

State Officers President....................Jack Roessler Vice President...............Kyla Mauk Secretary...................Valerie Earley Treasurer.......................Brady Wulf Reporter.........................Erin Larson Sentinel...................Dalton KampsenState Staff

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

MINNESOTA FFA TODAY National Convention Edition

Connect & Content

CDE Results4-7

National Winning Team6

Proficiencies & Star8-9

National Honors10-11

Experience FFA in Other ways12-15

Upcoming Events & Deadlines15

Don’t forget to join #FFAchat on Twitter!

CDEAgronomy [Windom]The Winsom FFA Chapter didn’t stop working after State Convetion. Through hours of practice, even in thesummer, Windom kept on top of their game to prepare for National Convention. Their hard work de�initelypaid off as they placed 6th at National Convention. Junior team member, Spencer Wolter, placed �irst in the event. The advice Spencer shares is, "Hard work with dedication pays off." Rylea Minion, Natalie Resch and Eliza Ford, additional teammembers, agree by adding learning can be fun when �inding something that interests you.

Dairy Cattle Evaluation [Caledonia]

Farm Business Management [Gibbon Fairfax Winthrop Pioneer Express]

Floriculture [Howard Lake Waverly Winsted]Team members were Maddie Weninger, Lindsay Marketon, Max Kittock, and Russell Bayerl. In addition to long hours preparation, the team made a stop at a wholesale �lorist to get in some last minute studying on their way down to Louisville. The Floriculture CDE is one of the longest at National Convention. Students donate the designs they created to the Louisville Veteran’s Hospital. They had an unforgettable morning delivering �lowers to the patients. This team’s hard work and dedication paid off, because at their banquet, they were announced as the 8th place team out of 44 in the country! Lindsay Marketon also received 15th place.

This CDE tests the knowledge about cattle and ability of the members through judging six classes and giving oral reasons while also completing an exam and team activities. The Caledo-nia FFA Chapter performed very well and earned 8th place overall. Team members were Lauren Hendel, Aaron Houdek, Chayce Krueger and Justin Stemper.

Cody Guenther, Noah Steinder, Micah Schwecke, and Ashley Schmidt represented Minnesota FFA in the Farm Business Management CDE. The CDE tests the ability of members to apply economic principles and concepts in analyzing farm and ranch management decisions. Members respond to questions concerning economic principles in farm business management as well as problem-solving. The GFW Pioneer Express FFA Chapter placed 9th.

Career Development EventsCareer opportunities abound within today’s agriculture industry.

Career Development Events (CDEs) help students develop the abilities to think critically, communicate clearly, and perform

effectively in a competitive job market.

Forestry [Grand Rapids]

Nursery Landscape [Howard Lake Waverly Winsted]

Meats [Pipestone]

The event included laying sod and pavers, giving presentations, creating a plant layout plan, knowledge test, identi�ication of plants, tools, and diseases, writing a business letter, propagating, and providing verbal customer service. After two long days of competition, the team’s hard work paid off! The team was awarded a Gold Emblem and 6th place in the event. Each member also received a gold emblem because of their high ranks. Team members included: Alexandra Thompson, Hannah Thompson, Alex Bestul and Keith Lent.

In Louisville at the 87th National FFA Convention the Grand Rapids FFA Chapter was represented well. Their team competed in the Forestry CDE and �inished as 9th earning them a Gold Emblem. The team, led by advisor Shawn Linder, consisted of Michael Gau, Austin Tatter, Tripp Ethridge, who all received Gold Emblems as indi-viduals, and Adam Schroeder, who received a Silver Emblem. During the competition, the team had to display their forestry knowledge several ways. They had to show their knowledge in tree identi�ication, forestry man-agement skills and diagnosing forest disorders.

Four members of the Pipestone FFA Chapter competed at National FFA Convention in the Meats Evaluation Career Development Event and placed third as a team. Brady Bobendrier, Bayley Colemer, the eight place overall individual, Josh Homann, the sixth place overall individual, and Blake Wolters made up the gold-emblem achieving team and each received an individual gold emblem placing.

The 2014 National FFA Convention was de�initely one to remember for the Dassel-Cokato FFA Chapter. Dassel-Cokato FFA represented Minnesota in the Food Science and Technology Career Develop-ment Event at National Convention . Team members include, Lydia Meredith, Alyssa Torolla, Christina Babb, and Mistin Peterson. The Food Science CDE consists of many different parts, such as, sensory evaluation, written exam, customer complaint letter, and a product development presentation. Many long, hard hours were spent studying with their coach, Mrs. Piepenburg. Mrs. Piepenburg is a teacher at the Dassel-Cokato High School, as well as a Dassel-Cokato FFA Alumni Member.

Across the state of Minnesota, FFA Alumni members serve as coaches and mentors to different chap-ters. They bring relevant and important experience needed to best prepare members to compete to the greatest of their ability. The Dassel-Cokato Food Science Team’s and coach’s hard work paid off when they were announced as 1st place! Also, Lydia was announced as �irst individual in the nation! “When we heard that we won, half of us were crying and the others were jumping and screaming! It was a stressful, yet rewarding feeling,” says Lydia.

Congratulations Dassel-Cokato!

Minnesota FFA is so proud of the huge accomplishments these ladies have made.

Team Wins National Event with

Alumni Coaching

Richard Baumann, Adult Farm Business Management Instructor at South Central College

Ron Dvergsten, Adult Farm Business Management Instructor at Northland Community and Technical College

Ken Goulart, Team Leader and Corridor Manager for Alliance Pipeline

Lisa Hoefs*, Agricultural Education Teacher at Medford High School

John Romines*, Vice President of Sales for Win�eld LLC, a Land O’ Lakes Company

Brian Schouvieller*, Sr. Vice President Ag. Business NA of CHS, Inc.

A. Lee Thompson, Retired Agricultural Education Teacher at Goodhue High School

Randy Zimmerman, Adult Farm Business Management at Northland Community and Technical College

* signi�es individuals who were nominated by National FFA Sta�.

Individuals who have provided exceptional service to agriculture, agricultural education or FFA are honored with the Honorary American FFA Degree.

Minnesota Recipients

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Honorary American FFA DegreeHonorary American FFA Degree

Team members were Maddie Weninger, Lindsay Marketon, Max Kittock, and Russell Bayerl. In addition to long hours preparation, the team made a stop at a wholesale �lorist to get in some last minute studying on their way down to Louisville. The Floriculture CDE is one of the longest at National Convention. Students donate the designs they created to the Louisville Veteran’s Hospital. They had an unforgettable morning delivering �lowers to the patients. This team’s hard work and dedication paid off, because at their banquet, they were announced as the 8th place team out of 44 in the country! Lindsay Marketon also received 15th place.

This past summer I was part of the 2014 Costa Rica FFA trip. It was a very educational and fun trip for me. We saw agricultural and tourist sites all which have been developed to have low impact on the environment which surrounds them.

Our group visited a DOLE banana farm, pineapple and coffee plantations, and a beef ranch. We saw the processing of bananas which would be exported under the DOLE name. The owners of the beef ranch prepared our entire group a delicious multi-course Costa Rican dinner.

We enjoyed the La Paz Waterfall Gardens which has trails that go through a butter�ly observatory and a garden populated with hummingbirds. Also, we walked on the Arenal Hanging Bridges, which consist of 14 �ixed and hanging galvanized steel bridges which were designed to blend with nature and leave the surrounding forest intact. During our stay, we went on boat cruises, experienced Costa Rican hot springs, did whitewater rafting and enjoyed the culture of Costa Rica.

Traveling to Costa Rica was a trip of a lifetime for me and it was also a great opportunity to travel with others who appreciate learning about agriculture.

-David Stenzel, USC FFA2014 Costa Rica Participant

2015 Minnesota FFA Costa Rica Participants:

Brandon Roiger, Sleepy Eye FFADakota Kalis, United South Central FFAColin Wegner, United South Central FFAGreta Tank, Randolph FFAAlan Barka, Litch�ield FFAJared Eilertson, United South Central FFA

The Costa Rica Pro�iciency and Stars Travel Seminar empowers FFA leaders by providing them with a global perspective. Through this experience, participants gain knowledge by

visiting farms and agribusinesses.

June 11-18, 2015

Costa Rica

Earn a trip to Costa Rica by applying for a pro�iciency award. Learn more at ffa.org under the Programs Tabor talk to your advisor. Applications are due soon!

Minnesota’s Star Finalist for the Star Farmer was ALAN BARKA. Alan comes from a dairy farm in Litch�ield, Minnesota where he is responsible for the day to day operations. He currently owns 43 dairy cattle and 25 calves. He exchanges farm work for housing and feed for his livestock. He hopes to one day increase his farming operation to 70 dairy cattle and 700 acres.

The Star Finalist for Star in Agribusiness was JARED EILERTSON from United South Central FFA in Wells, MN. Jared started out bailing ditch hay for his father’s livestock, but this venture turned into multiple agribusinesses for him. He now owns and operates two businesses, hay and trucking, where he maintains his own equipment and costs. He hopes to one day return to the farm with his father and brothers.

Congratulations to these two outstanding members!

Minnesota’s Star Finalists

2014 MINNESOTA AMERICAN FFA DEGREE RECIPIENTS

C ongratulations to the 126 Minnesota American F FA Degree recipients

Alexus Heldt | Goat Production

Greta Tank | Vegetable Production

Goats as gifts might not �it everyone’s interest, but it grabbed Alexus’. Her grandparent established her interest in goats by placing them under her name as a gift. Those gifts have now grown in numbers as Alexus currently owns 42 goats of her own. Recently, Alexus purchased goats from other herds to improve her genetics, assisting her to place well in local, state, and national shows. Alexus barters all her hours she works on the farm for feed, medication, and supplies.

The milk produced by her goats is consumed by her family and marketed to customers that come to their farm. Alexus continues to improve her herd while also being a student at UW-River Falls. A goal of hers is to improve her genetics through arti�icial insemination (AI) and to become skilled enough to AI her own goats. One piece of advice Alexus shares with other members is to �ind a SAE that you are passionate about and become involved in that SAE by attending workshops, conferences, or other events to improve your skill and knowledge. Alexus’ plan is to obtain her American FFA Degree and be selected for Star Farmer. At the end of the day, Alexus’ goal with her SAE is to teach the public about dairy goats.

Greta Tank is a sophomore at the University of Minnesota majoring in Agriculture Education with a focus onleadership and communications. Her SAE is working for Tank's Corner Stand, a family-owned seasonal sweet corn and fall produce business in Cottage Grove, Minnesota. Her interest in agriculture began at an early age while growing up on her family’s corn and soybean farm while helping her brother who owns Tank’s Corner Stand. She now helps with the agronomic side of the business including planting, irrigating, and daily harvest while also leading the marketing and sales of the product.

She would like to thank her advisor, Mr. Ed Terry, her parents, Myron and Linda, and her brother, Charlie, for helping her achieve her goals and providing opportunities to participate in FFA because the skills she has learned from her SAE have made her who she is and in�luenced her education and career plans.

NATIONAL PROFICIENCY WINNERSFROM MINNESOTA

Minnesota has exciting news! Minnesota FFA introduced an all new, one day conference, that was recently held at Camp Friendship in Annandale, MN . This one day conference took students through creat-ing ripples of leadership, by creating good habits, in their personal lives. Attendees learned how to develop action plans for their own lives from every angle in order to create an in�uence. Through H20, members in grades 10-12 de�ned habits and identi�ed the in�uence habits have on daily choices, recognized relationship potential and

bene�ts of maintaining a positive image, reviewed qualities of teamwork and demonstrated collaboration skills, and inspect

everyday in�uence.Look to join the experience coming to you soon!

MN FFA Leadership Conferences

POWER IIProviding O�cers with Essential Resources, was held on November 21 at Camp Friendship in Annandale for the Region O�cers from each of the eight regions in Minnesota. I was excited for POWER 2 as all the Region teams gathered together once again for an o�cer training. This was a great time for our team to work on continuing to develop our skills as FFA o�cers. We also got to spend time together as a team for a great bonding experience that will help us work together more e�ciently as a team. I am thankful for the opportunity to serve as a

region o�cer.-Travis Troendle, Region VIII O�cer

2014 MINNESOTA AMERICAN FFA DEGREE RECIPIENTS

The World Food Prize is an international organization based in Des Moines, IA which was created to recognize and reward the achieve-ments of individuals who have advanced the quality, quantity or availability of food worldwide. Norman Borlaug’s vision for the World Food Prize was to create an award which was equivalent to the Nobel Peace Prize of agricultural development. Each year, an interna-tional event called the Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium occurs in Des Moines, IA where agricultural issues are discussed at length and the laureate is awarded with the World Food Prize. In 1994, the World Food Prize Youth Institute was created to supply youth with the opportunity to confer with experts from around the world about hunger related issues.

As a senior in high school, I wrote a 5 page paper about sustainable grazing practices for Brazilian cattle. After presenting my research at the Minnesota Youth Institute (MNYI), I was invited down to the International Symposium where I was to participate in the Borlaug Dialogue and have the unique opportunity to present my ideas to a panel of experts and specialist in my area of research.

I was later o�ered an internship through the Minnesota Youth Insti-tute and the University of Minnesota to do research on sow hunger and the impact on their litter growth and development. The intern-ship not only gave me invaluable research experience before enter-ing college, it also kept me in contact with the MNYI as they asked me to present my research and Borlaug Dialogue experiences with the participants of the MNYI hoping to advance to the International Symposium. After presenting to the high school students, I was approached by the director of Youth Programs for the World Food Prize where he asked me to apply for one of the multiple internships which the World Food Prize o�ered.

I applied for and received their Wallace-Carver Fellowship which partnered with the USDA to place individuals in a USDA center of their choosing. During the internship, all of the fellows were �own to Washington D.C. where we met with top USDA government o�cials and attended the Laureate Announcement Ceremony in which Tom Vilsack announced the newest laureate. My research was done at the National Animal Disease Center where I studied prions and prion related diseases under Justin Greenlee.

The time I spent with peers at the World Food Prize and Leadership Symposium were some of the most memorable experiences in my lifetime. The overall energy and passion around during the sympo-siums were infectious and inspired a passion which I haven’t been able to let go. Never have I met a more passionate group of people who are working to �nd a solution to hunger issues. From being involved in the World Food Prize, I can say with con�dence that the issues surrounding hunger may be complicated but I have no wor-ries that the problems will be solved by the passionate people I met at the conferences. To get involved in the World Food Prize’s youth programs, check out the World Food Prize website at worldfood-prize.com and click on the youth programs link. -Brandon Hanson, Medford FFA

World Food Prize

2014 Minnesota ParticipantsDes Moines, Iowa

Agricultural Communications:: Bronze Emblem Team from Hutchinson; Silver Emblem Individual

Alecia Hansen; Bronze Emblem Individuals Megan Schlueter and Mitchell Sims

Agricultural Issues Forum: Bronze Emblem Team from Plainview-Elgin-Millville.

Agricultural Sales: Silver Emblem Team from Pipestone. Gold Emblem Individual Tia Muller, Silver

Emblem Individuals Matti Boomgaarden and Elizabeth Schneider, Bronze Emblem Individual Collin

Moeller.

Agricultural Technology and Mechanical Systems: Gold Emblem Team from Willmar: Gold Emblem

Individuals Alex Miner and Matt Miner. Silver Emblem Individuals Jacob Ackerman and Colton Swenson.

Creed Speaking: Bronze Emblem Individual Savannah Aanerud of Morris Area.

Dairy Cattle Handlers Activity: Gold Christopher Pederson of Mora FFA.

Environmental and Natural Resources: Silver Emblem Team from Grand Rapids FFA. Gold Emblem

Individual Gage Winkels. Silver Emblem Individuals - Wesley Mann, Austin Nelson and Ben Olson.

Extemporaneous Public Speaking: Bronze Emblem Individual Rebekka Paskewitz of Staples Motley.

Horse Evaluation: Silver Emblem Team from Chisago Lakes. Silver Emblem Individuals Ashley Angel,

Elizabeth Larson and Samantha Mellum. Bronze Emblem Individual Jenna Harrington.

Job Interview: Silver Emblem Individual Hannah Frank of Spring Valley Wykoff.

Livestock Evaluation: Gold Emblem Team Randolph. Gold Emblem Individual Jacob Frandrup. Silver

Emblem Individuals Will Bollum, Laura Church and Jackson Neil.

Marketing Plan: Silver Emblem Team from Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted.

Milk Quality and Products: Silver Emblem Team from Westbrook Walnut Grove. Gold Emblem Individual

Pahnia Vue, Silver Emblem Individuals Zuag Paj Her and Yer Xiong; Bronze Emblem Individual Seng

Xiong.

Parliamentary Procedure: Silver Emblem Team from Zumbrota Mazeppa.

Poultry Evaluation: Silver Emblem Team from Fulda. Gold Emblem Individuals Brett Cuperus and

Suzanne Pagel; Silver Emblem Individuals Bennett Appel and Thomas Salentiny.

Prepared Public Speaking: Bronze Emblem Individual Emily Clarke from Minneota.

Veterinary Science: Gold Emblem Team from Jackson County Central. Gold Emblem Individuals Jacey

Edlin and Hannah Holmberg . Silver Emblem Individual Alexa Palmer. Bronze Emblem Individual

Elyse Johnson.

CDE Teams & Placings

Agriscience Fair Animal Systems: Div 1 – Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg FFA – Halle Walsh - Bronze

Animal Systems: Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Nathan Vordeharr - Silver

Environmental Natural Resorce Systems Div 2 – Rochester FFA – Sam Woog - Silver

Food Systems Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Isabelle Forliti - Silver

Food Systems Div 2 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Mitchell Nelson - Silver

Plant Systems: Div 1 – Thief River Falls FFA – Karryn Leake - Gold

Plant Systems: Div 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Brady Storo - Bronze

Power, Structural &Technical Systems: Div 1 - Academy For Sciences And Agriculture FFA – Matias Carrera - Silver

Power, Structural &Technical Systems: Div 2 – Battle Lake FFA – Lucas Radermacher - Silver

Social Systems: Div 4 – Forest Lake FFA – Joe Ramstad & Megan Palmer – Gold

Congratulations!

Ag Policy Experience, previously called Ag Policy Bootcamp, is an opportunity for members across the state to be introduced to the world of public policy with an emphasis in agriculture. While this conference is only a few days long, a lot is accomplished in that time. Members get to hear from some of Minnesota FFA’s partners like Minnesota Farm Bureau, Minnesota Farmers Union, the Minnesota Soybean Council, along with many others. These partners help the members tremendously by informing them about current agricultural issues and how to interact with state legislators. Members practice these skills with each other and then they put them to use in the real world. Another great aspect of APEx is that members get to meet with their local legislators. During these visits, the members have to chance to advocate on behalf of the FFA and Agricultural Education as a whole. This gives members real world experience while also making a difference that affects the state and FFA as a whole. Overall APEx is about taking members that are passionate about public policy and making a difference in the FFA. Participants of APEx also get to come back share their experiences and be a leader during the FFA Day at the Capitol on February 26th.

Ag Policy Experience

Upcoming Dates & Deadlines

February 1: WLC Scholarships Due - MN FFA Foundation State Officer Nominating Committee Application dueFebruary 26: FFA Day at the CapitolMarch 1: State Officer applications dueMarch 19: State Ag Communications and Science Fair