Manson, IA ~ The Central Plains FFA Chapter had four individuals compete at the annual Manson Northwest Webster Trapshooting contest on Saturday, September 13th.&nbsp; Members were Lenix Allbee, Creighton Urban, Xander Dorman and Maverick Dorman. &nbsp; The team didn’t place in the top five, but Lenix Allbee placed 10th individually.&nbsp; Newell-Fonda won the event followed by South Central Calhoun FFA #1. <img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/BsWhABmaBrwWfTPCU-JXMl_2tT3xpFDlffCA3esVxojLsvX8ugikDKRobrpedItyRkeAD6tMcLsjUQdgudQ1-KrVGGEOa1xErEEvVwCiXGomgBLXQvP78lUTxZSoDA=s0" width="321" height="241">

FFA Competes at Trapshooting Event

On August 23rd, 4 members travelled to Iowa State University to compete in the State FFA Livestock Evaluation CDE. Here they judgedand gave oral reasons on various classes of beef, swine, sheep, andgoats. The team ended with a Silver Rating! Team Members (Left to Right):Lilly StewartAiden AndersonEmilia BloomquistCaleb Hayes <a href="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/south-east-valley.appspot.com/o/new-folder%2FFFA.jpg?alt=media&amp;token=f7f8416d-7685-4283-ba91-e3ab49c47d46" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Picture</a>

State Livestock Evaluation

Iowa Falls, IA -- The annual FFA Soil and Career Event was hosted by Ellsworth CommunityCollege in Iowa Falls on Wednesday, September 28 th . There were 25 chapters present with over 207 students competing the event. The Central Plains FFA team consisting of Michael Eslick, Max Hollman, Justin Loseke, and Madelyn Stanek captured second place and advanced to the state competition on Saturday, October 15th at Iowa State University. Justin Loseke placed 6th overall while Michael Eslick was 8th , Madelyn Stanek was 15th and Max Hollman was 20th overall in individual rankings. The team from Algona placed first. AGWSR (Ackley) was third, Nevada was fourth and the Hawkeye Chapter of West Bend-Mallard was fifth. The top five teams from the district compete at state. There are six districts in the state of Iowa with 25 to 30 FFA Chapters in each district. The objectives of the Soil Career Event are to motivate students to gain knowledge on surface features, the soil profile, land capability and productivity, evaluation of land use andmanagement practices, and suitability of soils for non-agricultural uses. It also strives to develop the ability to observe selected soil properties and to interpret and evaluate these properties for recommendations for land use. There will be 30 teams competing at the state competition on October 15th . <a href="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/south-east-valley.appspot.com/o/new-folder%2FSoils%202022%20District(1).jpg?alt=media&amp;token=678be7c7-f388-4dad-a8cd-263c2ebdf4af" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Picture</a>

FFA Soils Team Advances to State 

Wall Lake, IA ~ The Soil Judging team representing Southeast Valley (Central Plains FFA) placed second at the annual SWCD Soil Judging Contest sponsored by the Calhoun and Sac County Soil and Water Conservation Districts. There were over 90 students present making up around 28 three member teams. Placing first was the team from Sioux Center. Southeast Valley placed second and the third place team was from Pocahontas Area. There were teams from Manson NW-Webster, East Sac County, South Central Calhoun, and OABCIG (Ida Grove). Michael Eslick placed fifth overall while Max Hollman, Justin Loseke, and Maddy Stanek had a three way tie for seventh place. The team will travel to Iowa Falls on Wednesday, September 28th and participate in the N.C. District Soil CDE Event hosted by Ellsworth Community College.

Soil Teams Places Second

The Central Plains FFA Awards Night was held on Tuesday, March 22th, 2022 in the high school commons.&nbsp;On the menu was pork medallions, cheesy potatoes, assorted salads, roll, and drink all catered by Lidderdale Country Store.&nbsp;A variety of desserts were provided by the officer parents.Mr. Rylie Ferrari served as mc of the award session.&nbsp;Mr. Kehoe discussed the accomplishments of the chapter and recognized members who have been involved in FFA activities throughout the past year.&nbsp;Ms. Kathy Carlson, and Becca Vogel of Security Savings Bank were present to recognize the Iowa Degree recipients and provide them with a plaque and a $250.00 scholarship.&nbsp;Those members who will be conferred with their Iowa FFA Degrees are: Kyleigh Erritt, Rylie Ferrari, and Caden Larson.The “Star Greenhand” Award went to Spencer Suchan, the son of Andy and Stacy Suchan of Gowrie.&nbsp;&nbsp;Rylie Ferrari was named the Star Chapter Farmer and is the son of Troy and Lori Ferrari of Dayton.&nbsp;Caden Larson, the son of Scott and Peggy Larson was awarded Star Agribusiness of the chapter.&nbsp;The Star Chapter Award in Placement was awarded to Kyleigh Erritt the daughter of Michael and Tara Erritt of Callender.&nbsp;The top three students with fundraising sales (fruit and butter braids) were Alexis Peterson, Lucas Jondle, and Hanna Hicks (respectively).&nbsp;All three were recognized and awarded for their efforts.&nbsp;&nbsp;Academic Awards were given to Rylie Ferrari and Caden Larson for maintaining a GPA above 3.50 the past three years.&nbsp;The chapter was notified by the Iowa State FFA Association that two members will be recognized at the State Leadership Conference with their proficiency award applications. Chyann Hicks placed second place in Vegetable Production and Lucas Jondle earned runner-up honors in Ag. Mechanic Repair and Maintenance.&nbsp;&nbsp;Each year, over 5,000 FFA members and guests from across the state gather to learn about careers in the agriculture industry, compete for scholarships, volunteer in the community and shape the future of the Iowa FFA Association.&nbsp;The 94th Iowa FFA Leadership Conference will take place in Ames, Iowa on April 11th and 12th.&nbsp;Registration for the conference is $20.00 for advisors and FFA members and $5.00 for guests.&nbsp;The Parliamentary Procedure team will compete Monday morning while the Proficiency Award and Iowa FFA Degree Ceremonies are on Tuesday.&nbsp;Heartland Bank donated a quilt designed and sewn by Kelly Black.&nbsp;Tommy Halligan and Scott Weber represented Heartland Bank during the auction.&nbsp;The winning ticket was held by Brandon and Karen Jondle who then had Scott Klingson auction it off again with live bidding.&nbsp;Scott and Peggy Larson ended up with the winning bid.The 2021-22 retiring officer team are:&nbsp;President – Rylie Ferrari, Dayton; Vice President – Maddie VanSickle, Dayton; Secretary-Caden Larson, Callender; Treasurer-Just Loseke, Gowrie; Reporter-Kyleigh Erritt, Callender; Sentinel-Lucas Jondle, Callender; Chaplain-Haylee Welter, Gowrie;&nbsp;Parliamentarian-Alexis Peterson, Callender; and Historian-Pierce Woodruff, Moorland.The chapter appreciates the support given by parents, school administration, board of education, staff, and community members and businesses throughout the school year.&nbsp;

FFA Awards Night Held

Belmond, IA ~ The North Central FFA District Leadership Conference was held Saturday, March 5th in Belmond.&nbsp;Over 40 chapters across the district were present to compete in a variety of leadership events.&nbsp; The <a href="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/south-east-valley.appspot.com/o/High%20School%2FParli%202022.jpg?alt=media&amp;token=e3de19c0-ab9a-4b9d-8455-70c9fcd03938" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Parliamentary Procedure team</a> of Michael Eslick, Justin Loseke, Alexis Peterson, Spencer Suchan, and Maddie VanSickle earned a gold rating and advanced to state.&nbsp;The other chapter team earning a gold rating and advancing was Charles City.&nbsp;Other teams that competed that day in this event were AGWSR (Ackley), Iowa River (Garner), Tall Corn (Hampton), Nevada, Clear Lake and Boone A&amp;M.&nbsp;The students will compete on the state level on Monday, April 11 in the morning.&nbsp;The top two teams in each district advance and will compete.&nbsp;There will be 12 teams competing in this leadership development event.The chapter entered 10 proficiency applications that were evaluated on the state level.&nbsp;Applications that were received and submitted were from Breyton Cline, Kyleigh Erritt, Rylie Ferrari, Chyann Hicks, Lucas Jondle, Connor Klingson, Caden Larson, Blake Peterson, Gabby Stewart, and Maddie VanSickle.&nbsp;Those results will be published the first of April. The following students took the FFA Greenhand Manual Quiz online:&nbsp;Hanna Hicks, Karah Hayes, Lauren Eslick, Lily Reck, Grant Farnham, Shelby Sorenson, Lenix Allbee, Aden Jepsen, and Tyler Jondle.&nbsp;We had eleven members take the online Chapter Farmer Quiz who were:&nbsp;Bella Pudenz, Alexis Peterson, Breck Mills, Gabby Stewart, Haley Stewart, Isaiah Ihrig, Justin Loseke, Jillian Woodruff, Michael Eslick, Spencer Suchan, and Lauren Davis.&nbsp;The chapter earned recognition in the Superior National Chapter award program for activities performed on the local level. Kyleigh Erritt, Rylie Ferrari, and Caden Larson completed their Iowa FFA Degree applications and they were approved.&nbsp;They will be conferred their Degree on Tuesday, April 12th. The 94th State FFA Leadership Conference will take place in Ames on April 10-12, 2022.The local FFA Awards Banquet is scheduled for Tuesday, March 22nd at the High School Commons.&nbsp;Guest speaker this year is Mr. Todd R. Anderson, External Relations Coordinator from CJ Bio America, Fort Dodge.

North Central FFA District Conference Held

Des Moines, IA ~ Twenty-one Southeast Valley students involved with the CTE (career and technical education) areas of Ag. Education and Industrial Technology Departments attended the 2022 Iowa Ag Expo in Des Moines on February 2nd.The Iowa Ag Expo showcases over 760 companies representing 60 product and service categories across 7.7 acres, making it the third largest indoor farm show in the United States.Since 1910, this pure ag show produced by the Iowa-Nebraska Equipment Dealers Association (INEDA) features the best ag has to offer, including ag technology, big iron, precision ag, aerial imaging, livestock production, and more – everything farmers need to increase profits, lower input costs, and improve productivity.&nbsp;&nbsp;The students were presented information about the different careers within the industry and the opportunities for education funding and future employment.&nbsp;INEDA provided free admission and lunch for the students to attend for the day.

Local Students Attend Iowa Ag Expo

The local FFA Chapter received a grant through the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation and Iowa Select Farms&nbsp;to provide food for the local food pantries in the Southeast Valley School District. This is the third year in a row that the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation have provided funds for FFA and 4-H groups to participate in a community service project.&nbsp;Since 2011, the Hansen Foundation has hosted Operation Christmas Meal, a hunger relief effort supporting Iowa families in need of a helping hand, especially during the Holidays.&nbsp;Throughout the first two weeks of December, the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation host events where they distribute free 5-pound pork loins and a recipe and pork preparation booklet. The chapter received 24 pork loins and $250.00 dollars to purchase canned goods.&nbsp;This is the second year in a row the chapter has applied and earned a grant for the local food pantries. FFA officers who came in on Friday, December 17th to assist were: Rylie Ferrari-President, Maddie VanSickle-Vice President, Justin Loseke-Treasurer, Kyleigh Erritt-Reporter, and Pierce Woodruff-Historian.

Ignite the Spirit

News Release 2021 National FFA Convention and Expo, October 27 – 30 INDIANAPOLIS, IN--The 94th National FFA Convention &amp;amp; Expo celebrated itsannual in-person convention beginning October 27th and concluded on October30th . More than 60,000 FFA members and guests from throughout the UnitedStates, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands attended this year’s event. In 2020,the organization canceled the in-person event due to the COVID-19 pandemic andinstead offered a virtual experience. The in-person National Convention &amp;amp; Exporeturned to Indianapolis this year as part of the organization’s long-term hostingpartnership with Indianapolis that will run through 2033. The convention andexpo kicked off in Indianapolis, Indiana on Wednesday, October 27th . Sevengeneral sessions were held at Lucas Oil Stadium. On the morning of Saturday,October 30th , a special ceremony was held where American FFA Degrees, thehighest degree for an FFA member, was bestowed upon 3,863 members.Ben Carlson, the son of Jim and Jennifer Carlson of Gowrie received the AmericanDegree and was Iowa’s FFA Association’s Star Candidate in ProductionAgriculture.The Iowa FFA Association had representation from more than 3,000 attendeesinvolved in all facets of the four day convention.

Carlson Receives American Degree

Indianapolis, IN ~ The 94th National FFA Convention and Expo was held October 27th through the 30th&nbsp;in downtown Indianapolis.&nbsp;Over 55,000 FFA members and guest attended this year’s event.&nbsp;In 2020, the organization canceled the in-person event due to the COVID-19 pandemic and instead offered a virtual experience.&nbsp;Seven general sessions were held at Lucas Oil Stadium and a special event was held on Saturday to bestow the American FFA Degree (highest degree for an FFA member).The local chapter had 12 members and their advisor attend this year’s event.&nbsp;The chapter traveled with four other chapters and used Northland Travel agency as their booking agent.&nbsp;The other chapters who shared the chartered bus were members from Ballard, Des Moines, Roland-Story and South Hamilton.&nbsp;Those attending locally were Carly Davis, Kyleigh Erritt, Jenna Hanson, Chloe Hurtado, Breck Mills, Shelby Mills, Leilah Olson, Alexis Peterson, Bella Pudenz, Maddie VanSickle, Haylee Welter, and Jillian Woodruff. The chapter visited the Indy 500 Race track and Museum and went on the “Kiss the Brick” tour.&nbsp;The next day they toured Ozark Fish Hatchery at Martinsville, Indianapolis which was founded in 1926.&nbsp;The hatchery raised Koi and Goldfish for commercial use.&nbsp;The last toured the members had was the traditional visit to the NCAA Museum.&nbsp;They were able to view and learn about the history of college athletics and how the organization of NCAA was founded. They attended the Opening Session of the 94th Convention and heard remarks from Courtenay DeHoff, founder of the brand “Fancy Lady Cowgirl”.&nbsp;She grew up in rural Kansas and through her experiences in television broadcasting as a reporter she had many ups and downs throughout her career.&nbsp;She then found herself advocating for agriculture while living in New York City.&nbsp;She began posting agriculture topics on social media and started to receive over 1.5 million views.&nbsp;It was then she founded “Fancy Lady Cowgirl”.The chapter also attend Session three and listened to the retiring address from National FFA Secretary Anna Mathis from the state of Arkansas which was titled: “Embrace, Encourage, and Enjoy”.The group returned to home late Friday afternoon.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Members Attend 94th National FFA Convention

North Central District Soils CDE HeldFort Dodge, IA ~ The annual Soils Career Development Event was held on Wednesday, October 6th at the Ann Smeltzer Learning Farm south of Otho, IA.&nbsp;Iowa Central Community College hosted the event.There were 23 chapters present with over 194 students participating in the contest.&nbsp;The Iowa Soils C.D.E. goals are to motivate students to gain knowledge on surface features, the soil profile, land capability and productivity, evaluation of land use and management practices, and suitability of soils for nonagricultural uses. It also will develop the ability to observe selected soil properties and to interpret and evaluate these properties for recommendations for land use.The Central Plains FFA Chapter placed 8th overall out of the 23 chapters present.&nbsp;The top ten chapters were: AGWSR (Ackley), Algona, Nashua-Plainfield,&nbsp;Hawkeye FFA (West Bend), Grundy Center, Nevada, Iowa River (Garner), Central Plains (Gowrie), Humboldt and Webster City.Michael Eslick placed 19th overall with his individual score. Participating locally were: Ryan Carter, Jarod Cloud, Michael Eslick, Jenna Hanson, Lucas Jondle, Isabella Pudenz, and Pierce Woodruff.&nbsp;Greenhand Fire Up Camp Held.The District also hosted the Greenhand Fire Up Camp with 400 freshmen attending.&nbsp;The state FFA Officer team along with other district officers organized and sponsored the event.&nbsp;Attending locally were:&nbsp;Lenix Allbee, Aiden Anderson, Lauren Eslick, Grant Farnham, Abby Halligan, Karah Hayes, Hanna Hicks, Tyler Jondle, Chloe Lambert, Lily Reck, Shelby Sorenson, Cale VanSickle, and Ryan Wicklein.

North Central District Soils CDE Held

Central Plains Livestock Judging Wins at Clay County Fair

Des Moines, IA ~ The Central Plains FFA Chapter had 18 members exhibit at the 2021 State Fair in mid-August.&nbsp;Local members were involved with Ag. Mechanics, Horticulture, Meat Goats, Photography, Sheep, and Swine.&nbsp;The Iowa FFA Association sponsors an activity that recognizes chapters whose members excelled at the fair.&nbsp;It is called the Supreme Overall Chapter Awards.&nbsp;It is based on how well members exhibited within their departments during the State Fair.&nbsp;The local chapter placed fifth overall as a chapter in photography division and seventh overall in the market swine division.The Agri-Power FFA Chapter from Eddyville was crowned the “2021 Supreme Chapter” overall winner. The West Marshall Chapter of State Center was runner-up. The Central Plains Chapter ended up 28th overall.&nbsp;There are 253 FFA chapters in the state and over 200 chapters had at least one member exhibiting at the State Fair.&nbsp;With only 18 members exhibiting in the different areas, it demonstrated that the local members had quality entries this past year for the chapter to score so well overall.&nbsp;Those exhibiting locally were Jarod Cloud, Carly Davis, Kyleigh Erritt, Rylie Ferrari, Chyann Hicks, Chloe Hurtado, Caden Larson, Justin Loseke, Breck Mills, Leilah Olson, Alexis Peterson, Austin Sorenson, Gabby Stewart, Hailey Stewart, Maddie VanSickle, and Haylee Welter, Jillian Woodruff, and Pierce Woodruff.