COLT Conference - September 30, 2017

Cornell Collegiate FFA Hosts 130 FFA Members for Chapter Officer Leadership Training

One day is a short amount of time, but COLT conference is paramount to a successful year ahead for chapter leaders. COLT conference is packed full of workshops that are facilitated by Cornell’s Collegiate FFA and State FFA Officers which help lay the groundwork for a successful year as a chapter. Teamwork, fundraising, and building relationships are just a few of the topics that are addressed with these leaders while at COLT Conference. Students are required to meet new people, try new things, and push themselves out of their comfort zones in order to become a better leader for their chapter. Leaders from the same chapter worked together to complete a team challenge which involved creating their own emblem that represented their own team or chapter. Paige Warren a member of the Otselic Valley FFA chapter expressed, “I thought that it was a great activity and had fun doing it!”

Cornell Collegiate FFA has been hosting COLT Conference for the last decade as a way for their members to play a role in developing future leaders. High school members are not the only ones receiving a benefit from this experience, Collegiate FFA members are able to use their passions and efforts to continue to serve the organization in hopes of reaching their own goals.  Alison Parrott, a member of the Cornell CFFA says that the chapter has many goals for COLT, one of which is “to make it as successful as possible for the chapters attending so that they can grab on to the ideas they acquire at COLT and bring them back to strengthen their chapter with the new information that students gained.”

COLT Conference is one of many leadership conferences offered to our members throughout the year. Our members also have opportunities for further development at 212/360, Governmental & Global Awareness Institute, and State Convention!  

Respectfully Submitted by, Kimberly Doyle
NY FFA State Reporter, 2017-2018

US Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue visits John Bowne High School, Flushing, NY

October 11, 2017: Today we had the honor of a visit from the US Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue.  Several of our students toured him around our farm and facilities while explaining our many operations.  After the tour, 25 students had lunch and a Q&A session with the Secretary.  Secretary Perdue stated that he has been all over the country, visited many Agriculture Programs, and he believes ours to be the best he has ever seen. The Secretary noted the comprehensive programming and numerous opportunities we offer our Aggies.  A humorous quote from one of our students, "wow, he's a really cool guy".  This was a great opportunity for our students to feel validated and proud because such a busy and important person would take 3 and 1/2 hours of his day to spend with them.  The highest political person in agriculture told them he was proud of their accomplishments and pursuits in this field.  It doesn’t get better than that.

Steven S. Perry, Assistant Principal
Agriculture Department
John Bowne High School

NY State FFA Reporter, Kim Doyle Testifies at US House of Representatives Agriculture Committee Hearing

Click here for video - Kim Doyle starting at 1:14 mark.

August 2017 NY FFA Speaks

Actions Influence Members - First AIM Conference

Syracuse, NY August 29, 2017

On August 26, 2017 students came into the Empire room at the Great New York State Fair, not knowing what to expect out of the next 24 hours during this brand-new conference. Students worked through multiple activities throughout the weekend to not only better themselves, but also develop skills to help improve their chapters’ program of activities. With the hope of coming out of this conference being more prepared for their year ahead. Taylor Rollins, District Five President, says “I was super excited that it wasn’t like any ordinary conference and that we were going to interact with so many different people.”

Throughout the entire conference, members were encouraged to network with other chapters. Icebreakers and other social activities allowed members to learn and really get to know the people they would be working with. One highlight from the conference was the opportunity for participants to interact with the National FFA President, David Townsend! David joined us for 6 days at the fair and was given the opportunity to see NY FFA members in action as they not only participated in AIM but also competed in multiple career development events.  

While developing their chapter’s program of activities, FFA members had to develop a new activity that would promote and educate the public about agriculture. After developing their activity, each chapter was then sent out into the fair to implement it. Three judges, David Townsend the National FFA President, Christina Layne a representative from New York State Ag and Markets, and Eileen Jenson from the New York Animal Coalition were sent out to evaluate and rank each of the activities. The chapter that received the highest score received a $500 grant to help implement their program of activities for the coming year. This year’s grant winner was the Southern Cayuga FFA chapter for how well they educated the public about bees! We received such positive feedback and many chapters look forward to coming back next year!

FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth, and career successful through agriculture education. For more information regarding FFA please visit either www.nysffa.org or www.ffa.org. 

Respectfully Submitted by,
Kimberly Doyle
NY FFA State Reporter, 2017-2018