Nationwide FFA members attend Next Gen Conference in Utah

This week, the National FFA Organization is hosting its Next Gen Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Next Gen Conferences prepare high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors for the more than 350 careers in agriculture and help fill the talent pipeline.

The topic of the conference is Environmental Services and Natural Resources, and high school students and FFA members from across the country will learn through informational sessions, panels and tours.

Tour locations in Salt Lake City during the conference include:

• • Antelope Island
  • Rio Tinto Kennecott Copper Mine

The National FFA Organization recently announced its record-breaking milestone of having more than 1 million FFA members: 1,027,273. Utah was the top state for percent of membership growth compared to last year.

“It’s exciting to know that this Next Gen Conference will take place in a state that has grown so much in membership this past year,” said Ashli Weinrich, Program Specialist, Advocacy, Literacy, and Ag-Based Experiences, National FFA Organization. “With the conference topic being ‘environmental service and natural resources,’ it’ll be great to see the students learn about and gain awareness around careers that affect our air, soil, and water.”

Year-round educational opportunities like the Next Gen Conferences, which occur three times this year, help to prepare the next generation of leaders through educational opportunities that highlight different career pathways.

For the September conference, these 75 high school students were selected through a competitive application process:

Alabama

Olidia Berrera, Crenshaw County FFA
Sandra Hall, Crenshaw County FFA
Paige Daniel, Crenshaw County FFA
Anna Foster, Crenshaw County FFA
Abigail Fergusen, Fort Payne FFA

Arizona

Owen Smorong, Buckeye Union FFA
Autumn Shanahan, Desert Edge FFA

California

Holly Speake, San Luis Obispo FFA
Arwen Adams, Susanville FFA

Delaware

Brody Masten, Smyrna High School FFA
Desiree Taylor, Smyrna High School FFA

Florida

Coral Stevenson, Oakleaf High School FFA
Alynza McBride, South Sumter Senior FFA
Brylee Wood, Oakleaf High School FFA
Madison Hope, West Nassau High School FFA
Aiden Kile, Oakleaf High School FFA

Illinois

Greyson Applebee, Maroa-Forsyth FFA
Toby Williams, Stark County FFA
Garrett Bruecks, Stark County FFA

Indiana

Logan McConnell, Greenfield Central FFA
Leah Manley-George, Fishers FFA
Louis Allyn, Mount Vernon FFA

Iowa

Easton Richards, Nashua Plainfield FFA
Sophie Berends, Aplington-Parkersburg FFA
Chase Sorenson, Forest City FFA
Parker Messerich, Northeast FFA
Alaina White, Central DeWitt FFA
Aidan Yaddof, Calamus-Wheatland FFA

Kansas

Makayla Smith, Junction City FFA
Landen Larson, Arkansas City FFA

Kentucky

Charlee Benton, Madison Southern FFA
Madison Young, Johnson Central FFA
Benjamin Bratcher, Butler County FFA
Christian Ashby, Nelson County Schools FFA
Riley Hall, Nelson County Schools FFA
Warren Zabenco, Nelson County Schools FFA
Owen Kelley, Nelson County Schools FFA

Louisiana

Jamira Guillory, Westlake FFA

Michigan

Karlie Goble, Marshall FFA
Lily McNabb, Laker FFA
Sterling Tomac, Chesaning FFA
Noah Smith, Laker FFA
Sydney Pawlowski, Harbor Beach FFA

Minnesota

Tessa Weber, Crookston FFA
Ellie Swart, Howard-Lake-Waverly-Winsted FFA
Leya Anderson, Menahga FFA
Chloe Kieser, Howard-Lake-Waverly-Winsted FFA

Missouri

Aiden Long, Neosho FFA
Landon Pottebaum, Montgomery County R-II FFA
Caroline Stallman, Glasgow FFA

Montana

Joel Standley, Missoula FFA

New York

Gabrielle Downey, Carthage FFA

North Carolina

Laiken Wilcox, Lumberton FFA
Claire Fields, Asheboro Zoo FFA
Madisyn Russell, Perquimans FFA

Oklahoma

Kane Mcculah, Adair FFA

Oregon

Robert Harris, Banks FFA

Pennsylvania

Elizabeth Eckenrode, Big Spring FFA

South Carolina

Elizabeth Viseth, SC’s Governor’s School for Agriculture FFA

South Dakota

Peyton Roskens, Bridgewater-Emery FFA

Tennessee

Maddie Shackelton, Lebanon FFA
Olivia See, Lebanon FFA
Isabelle Harville, Lebanon FFA
Caroline Garrell, Lincoln County High School FFA

Texas

Katie Turner, Llano FFA

Utah

Vannesa Vos, Granite Mountain FFA
Jacob Jensen, Granite Mountain FFA

Washington

Dane Booth, Oakesdale FFA

Wisconsin

Vanessa Paquette, Mishicot FFA
Tessa Kamien, Mishicot FFA
Owen Moore, Mishicot FFA
Alexa Heikamp, Bangor FFA
Riddik Weber, Bay Port FFA
Cecilia Rose, Bay Port FFA
Jozlyn Stuczynski, Amherst FFA