Missouri FFA Convention

May 04, 2023

FFA members from across the state met in Columbia, April 20-21, at the 95th Missouri FFA Convention to honor fellow members for outstanding achievements, conduct association business, elect new officers, and participate in leadership workshops.

Ignite, Embrace, Empower was the theme for this year’s annual convention.  More than 8,000 students and guests came to the Hearnes Center on the University of Missouri campus.

Canton FFA members attended leadership sessions, volunteered to serve as Courtesy Corps members, and attended General Sessions. Trevor Morrall and Jordan Berhorst served as voting delegates for the FFA Chapter. Robert Ellison was recognized on for his Area-winning Proficiency Award in Landscape Management for his lawn-mowing SAE project.   Robert was among 554 FFA members who received awards in 45 agricultural proficiency areas for the development of their supervised agricultural experience program (SAE). The proficiency areas are varied and include production, management, and communications disciplines. SAE programs in Missouri, during the 2020 record year, generated more than $58 million in student income.

FFA members also participated in a number of organization program areas, including career development events such as agricultural sales, floriculture, livestock evaluation, and speaking competitions.

The Missouri FFA presented awards to several adults and groups for their support of agricultural education and FFA. This year 32 Honorary State FFA Degrees will be presented. An additional 16 honorary degrees will be presented to parents of the retiring state officers.

Three FFA chapters were chartered during the Friday morning session. The new chapters are Blue Eye, Laquey, and North Pemiscot.

National FFA Secretary Jessica Herr, from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, addressed FFA members and guests during the second general session Thursday evening.  Herr has worked on the family farm, consisting of dairy, poultry, and crops. After her year of service as a National FFA Officer, she will return to Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania to study agricultural sciences and leadership development.

Herr was elected as a national officer in October during the national convention. The six-person national officer team will collectively log more than 100,000 miles representing FFA to top leaders in business, government, and education. National officers also lead numerous personal growth and leadership training sessions and promote agricultural literacy.

The first session included remarks from Christopher Daubert, vice chancellor and dean of the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources; Chris Chinn, Missouri Department of Agriculture director and Margie Vandeven, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education commissioner.

The fifth session included remarks from Mun Choi, president of the University of Missouri, and a keynote address from Morris Morrison, Windmill Park Media. Morrison’s journey, from growing up as an orphan to a career of motivating others, ignites his audience members to make their own positive impact.

The Missouri FFA has 25,920 members representing 355 chapters. The national organization has more than 850,000 members representing 8,995 chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.