Brownsboro FFA ranks third in Leadership Development

Brownsboro FFA members proudly display their banners won at the leadership event. Courtesy Photo

The Leadership Development Event Sweepstakes was Tuesday, November 6, and the Brownsboro Chapter FFA, the Brownsboro High School agriculture department, came home with the title of third place overall.

Up to 45 Brownsboro FFA students competed among 16 schools at Trinity Valley Community College in almost a dozen different competitions. The competition included Henderson, Anderson and Freestone counties.

Derek Sims, an agriculture teacher at Brownsboro High School, said the students have worked hard for several weeks to practice for the event.

"We've been practicing for the past six weeks," Sims said. "The kids have been demonstrating farm skills and holding mock meetings to prepare for sweepstakes."

Sims also said of the 45 students who went to the competition, only 10 were veterans of the event.

"Doing well is nothing new to us, but this year with a new group of kids, we've come a long way," Sims said.

Beth Stutts, also an agriculture teacher at BHS, said some students came to practice as early as 7 am.

"We had practices in the morning from 7 to 8, and after school from 3:30 to 5 pm," Stutts said.

Stutts also said not all the teams would practice at once.

This year's ranking is a repeat of last year's with a significant difference; the lowest ranking in any single competition this year was sixth, while the lowest ranking of a single competition from 2006 was eighth or ninth, Sims also said.

"This is a big accomplishment for us. The kids' hard work paid off."

The team received banners as prizes.

Fairfield placed first overall, while Frankston placed second.

The Brownsboro FFA placed third in senior farm skills, junior farm skills and in agriculture issues. It placed fourth in public relations, junior creed and junior quiz, and fifth in farm radio, junior chapter conducting and job interview. The team's sixth place competitions were senior chapter conducting and senior quiz, Sims said.

The team did not have a senior creed team.

Some of the contests were demonstrations of farm skills, while others involved parliamentary procedures and agriculture knowledge tests. Farm where students would be in charge of a local radio station.

Stutts said the radio contest was her favorite.

"It gave students the chance to do something they don't usually get to participate in," Stutts said.

Sims said the students dedicated countless hours before school and after school to practice.

"They definitely did well," Sims added.

Stutts said the FFA environment allows students to motivate each other, and most of the students are very dedicated to the FFA.