Image courtesy of the National FFA Organization
Over 70 FFA student members serving as state officers in their respective states started the new year by exploring the history, culture, and agricultural practices of Spain through National FFA’s International Leadership Seminar for State Officers.
ILSSO is an annual program designed to develop awareness of global agriculture and enhance cultural competency of student members. The traveling state officers help lead more than 1 million members in 9,235 local FFA chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“During the trip, students had the opportunity to both demonstrate their knowledge and learn about diverse agriculture practices across the globe,” said Joe Martin, program specialist, advocacy, literacy and ag based experiences at the National FFA Organization. “These experiences overseas help state officers share the unique agriculture practices of Spain with the members of their home state associations.”
While the students had the opportunity to tour and experience the sights of various cities, they spent most of their time focused on agriculture practices in Spain. Participating members visited a cork factory outside of Barcelona, red fruit farm and Iberian ham producer near Sevilla, a citrus and cereal cooperative close to Cordoba, the white windmills in Consuegra and the John Deere Innovation Center in Madrid, among other exciting agriculture-focused activities.
The State FFA Officers who participated were:
Alaska
Alabama
Delaware
Florida
- Trenton Felton
- Isabelle Jenkins
- Ryleigh Locke
- Reagan Rowe
Iowa
- Lindsay Beyer
- Jagger Ferrie
- Nora Pickhinke
- Cooper VanderHeiden
Idaho
- Gabriel Kitamura
- Alison Misenheimer
- Elizabeth Mueller
- Matthew Waite
Kansas
- Bricen Benyshek
- Maggie Chandler
- Dustin Denton
- Lillian Hulse
- Allyson Rietcheck
- Marisa Wasinger
Kentucky
- Matthew Estes
- Maryland
- Sam Moreland
- Hailey Pleasants
Mississippi
- Graycn Foster
- Byron Lopez
- Ella Mills
Montana
- Autumn Benson
- Morgan Bisel
- Jordan Leach
- Weston Sondeno
- Cole Waldusky
North Carolina
Nebraska
- Leah Christen
- New Jersey
- Peter DelCollo
New Mexico
- Ronald Garay
- Jayda Goodson
Ohio
- Paris Anderson
- Malainy Boes
- Audrey Boeshart
- Abigail Garland
- Henry Hoisington
- Taylor Johnson
- Austin Manning
Oregon
- Lydia Cruikshank
- Olivia Sturm
- Alexander Wise
- Rhode Island
- Bryan Jones
- South Carolina
- Brooklyn Hill
Tennessee
- Weston Brown
- Lucy Jackson
- Kadence Lipford
- Sarah Marshall
- Abigail Warbington
- Abigail Whicker
Texas
- Maddison Diezi
- Riley Farris
- Brady Hudler
- Stephen Smith
Virginia
- Franco Abud
- Emma Alexander
- Kylie Bailey
- Georgia Grady
- Frank Kent
- Danike Landreth
- Allexis Phillips
Washington
- Kaylyn Bozeman
- Aubrey Gardiner
- Claire Sheehan
- Gustaf Suksdorf
- Wisconsin
- Tyson Gehrke
West Virginia
Wyoming
