Ag student leaders in DC

By Andi Anderson

FFA State Officer leaders from all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands gathered in Washington, D.C., from July 22-26 to advocate for agriculture at the federal level during the National FFA State Officer Summit.

This event aimed to promote the importance of agriculture and agricultural education to federal legislators.

State Officer Teams met virtually with their representatives to emphasize the significance of agriculture and advocate for the extension of funding for FFA through the Farm Bill.

They also invited legislators to join the Congressional FFA Caucus, which supports career and technical education, maintains a youth perspective in agriculture and nutrition policy, and strengthens relationships between Congress and agricultural education teachers and FFA members.

The National FFA State Officer Summit was held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel and included five days of training focused on advocacy for agriculture and FFA. The training aimed to develop clear and consistent messages related to agriculture and the FFA organization.

During meetings with state legislators, FFA student leaders highlighted the Congressional FFA Caucus and invited officials to become members. The bi-partisan caucus is co-chaired by Representatives Tracey Mann (R-KS) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) in the House of Representatives and Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Senator John Boozman (R-AR) in the Senate.

The caucus advocates for strong career and technical education legislation and maintains a youth perspective in agricultural and nutrition policy.

FFA members also advocated for the reauthorization of a grant in 7 U.S.C. 7630(d)(2) that supports youth organizations, including National FFA, the National 4-H Council, Boy Scouts of America, and Girls Scouts of America, as part of the U.S. Farm Bill.

They requested support for extending the sunshine date of this grant to align with the next reauthorization of the U.S. Farm Bill.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the agriculture industry contributes over $1.5 trillion to America’s gross domestic product. Continued funding will provide consistent support for organizations working to prepare the next generation of global leaders in agriculture.

The National FFA State Officer Summit provided a valuable opportunity for FFA leaders to advocate for the future of agriculture and ensure that young people continue to receive the education and resources necessary to thrive in this vital industry.

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