Growing skills beyond the farm

RATHDRUM — For Lakeland High School teacher Laura Kelley, her participation in Future Farmers of America during her teens colored every aspect of her adult life.

In her 22nd year of teaching, Kelley instructs agricultural leadership, animal science and floral design. And she's founded the first FFA chapter in Lakeland Joint school district.

The “communication and leadership skills” she acquired in FFA are by far the most valuable take-away, she said.

“FFA grooms students to be able to converse face to face. For students to be able to do that effectively is pretty important,” Kelley said. “To be able to shake someone's hand and introduce yourself.”

Presenting oneself in person and having the skill to converse about farming or current news, for example, is vital especially in today’s digital age, Kelley said.

Kelley leads a group of 34 high-school students as they explore every facet of agriculture and farming business.

FFA participants gain leadership and networking skills and develop career opportunities. They access scholarship and internship opportunities, attend conferences and gain hands-on agricultural experience.

Kelley’s students have done internships with The Maschhoffs, who raise commercial swine in Illinois. The Maschhoff farming operation focuses on “sustainable pig production,” and pork produced on their hog farms feeds about 15 million people annually.

The Maschhoffs have developed a unique system for fertilization. They use the pig manure produced on their farms to fertilize the corn they grow, which is then fed back to their herd. This is called a “sustainable nutrient cycle,” where nothing is wasted. Many farms don’t practice this, sometimes resulting in grievous cases of pollution and contamination.

Other students have gone to intern in Washington D.C., lobbying on agricultural issues — both for, and against, Kelley said.

“It leads people to decide if they like the agriculture field or not,” Kelley said.

Whether or not they go into agriculture, the skills members learn can be applied to any career path.

Seventeen-year-old Cole Andres aspires to become an orthopedic surgeon, but being a part of FFA is something of a “family tradition.” His extended family in Montana includes generations of FFA members.

Andres shows goats and pigs and serves as the president of the Lakeland FFA Chapter.

“People think that FFA is just agriculture,” he said. “But it’s also a lot of other things.”

Being a part of the officers' team has been a high point of his experience. “Motivating other people, and working hard so meetings and events go well,” has helped him become a “well-rounded person,” he said.

Still in its inaugural year, Lakeland FFA has been extremely busy. They participated in Rathdrum’s Trunk or Treat in October and the Rathdrum Lighted Vehicle parade in December.

Ten students went to the Gem State Leadership Conference and 10 students attended the State FFA conference in Twin Falls, where they were officially sworn in as a chapter. They often participate in community service and most FFA members have an agricultural project they're also invested in.

Students are preparing for the state livestock judging finals taking place in Moscow in June.

Livestock judging gives students an opportunity to demonstrate problem-solving and public speaking skills among other aptitudes, Kelley said. There are classes of livestock — cows, pigs, sheep, etc., and four animals are presented in each class. Students rotate through and assess each animal based on industry ideals. Then they must verbally present justification for their decisions. The ideal outcome is to award the same ratings for each animal as the overseeing judge.

Fourteen-year-old Lauren Peterson has always had a “passion for agriculture but didn’t know much about it,” she said. So she joined Lakeland FFA.

“Right now I’m just exploring agriculture options, but I’m interested in becoming a vet tech,” she said.

She also is involved in 4-H and works with goats. She joined FFA to “branch out and try something new,” she said.

“It’s crazy cool to do livestock judging,” Peterson said. “It’s been a really good experience.”

Under the leadership of Kelley and the officers team, Peterson feels like she's developed “a strong backbone.” Her hopes of going into an agriculture-related field have her feeling really positive about her future.

“I love how the leadership runs. They are social, eager and confident,” Peterson said. “The state officers are a role model for me.”

Visit ffa.org for more information on Future Farmers of America.

This story has been amended to reflect a correction.