UCM Celebrates Agriculture Hosting 2023 FFA Central District Competition

Surrounding table in the University of Central Missouri Multipurpose Building, high school students from throughout the Missouri FFA Central District tested their knowledge and skill at  evaluating different types of meat as one of many events at the district's annual competition.  

WARRENSBURG, MO – Weeks of preparation to develop knowledge and skills in several agriculture areas culminated with approximately 1,800 high school students competing in the Missouri FFA Central District competition March 28 at the University of Central Missouri.

The annual event was hosted by UCM with leadership provided by the university’s Department of Agriculture as well as assistance from department alumni who are former FFA members, and agriculture faculty, staff and students. They were instrumental in making the competition events possible utilizing facilities such as the Multipurpose Building, University Farms, agricultural mechanics area and a number of other campus locations.

High school students who traveled to UCM took part in team events, where they were asked to individually demonstrate their aptitude for evaluating several different agriculture or food elements. A number of students who scored high in these contests will go on to compete in state FFA contests at the University of Missouri-Columbia in April. State winners move on to national competitions, which take place during the National FFA Convention in the fall.

Adam Brock, a former FFA member from Lexington who serves as president of the Central District Agriculture Teachers Association, was among individuals who welcomed students and their agriculture teachers to campus during the open session at the Multipurpose Building. He was joined by UCM President Roger Best and Michelle Santiago, chair of the university’s Department of Agriculture.

With so many different contests and locations, he jokingly described his job as a “director of chaos, making sure everything is off and running the way they are supposed to be.” He added that the FFA had received great support from members of the campus community as well as UCM alumni who were helping to make this program a great learning experience for students. 

“These events are super competitive, and there are multilayers to every contest so they are learning a lot of information about a subject, whether it’s livestock judging or farm business management or dairy cattle judging…Then there are things like public speaking they must learn, so there’s a lot of layers to all of this,” Brock said.

One element of the many competitions has to do with team representatives making a persuasive speech to explain reasons why they made certain choices related to an item they have scored. Official placement and answers are set by an expert in an agriculture discipline. This is often someone who works in agriculture agency or university.

Brock noted that host sites such as UCM are selected based on their ability to accommodate the number of student participants and facilities where various competitions are to be held. A stroll through the Multipurpose Building demonstrated just how diverse those accommodations must be. 

While stationary seats in the Multipurpose Building served as the main gathering spot for opening ceremonies, the facility’s arena floor was abuzz with activity throughout the morning of the district contest. In the southwest corner of the building, for example,  young men and women wearing their iconic FFA blue and gold corduroy jackets formed a couple of long lines that slowly edged their way to a table to sample potato chips and soda as part of a food science activity to evaluate processed foods. Elsewhere in the building, there were stations featuring dairy products and equipment, and long tables with different cuts of meat, floriculture items, as well as an entomology station. These were all surrounded by rows of students who were sitting in desks completing their written requirements. Outside this facility, students were found scoring and using agricultural machinery at a location on Broad Street while busloads of student competitors converged on the Prussing Farm, east of Warrensburg, to evaluate cattle, sheep, goats and soils.

While being part of the event, some high school agriculture instructors and former FFA members, also enjoyed an opportunity to return to their alma mater. Among them was Jake Montemayor, a 2013 graduate of UCM’s baccalaureate program in Agriculture Education. He accompanied a group of his students from Cole Camp to campus after working with them this academic year in areas such as dairy products, livestock, nursery and landscape.

Montemayor grew up on a farm near Lincoln, Missouri, and became an  FFA member through State Fair Community College in Sedalia before coming to UCM. He recalled some of his favorite university faculty members who continue to inspire him long after his graduation. He added that, “UCM gave me real-world life skills that I could put in my classroom.” 

Another UCM alumnus who had a strong role in the FFA Central District competition was Avery Deevers, an agriculture instructor at Crest Ridge High School, near Centerview, Missouri. He graduated from the university’s Agriculture Education program in 2013, and is the Central District FFA liaison and district contest coordinator. He brought with him two Crest Ridge students, one of whom is considering following in his footsteps by pursuing a career as an agriculture teacher.

“I think it’s cool to be able to have this at the same place I competed when I was in high school and to be back here again helping out,” Deevers said. “It is a great way to give back to my ag education kids and also a cool way to be connected with the university where I graduated.” 

He spoke briefly about what he gained as a former FFA member, noting, “I think one of the biggest things I got from it, that I instill in my students now, is just learning to be yourself…learning  how to challenge yourself and not being comfortable all of the time. That’s a big thing for our kids now, they want to stay in their comfort zone, and they can’t.”

Deevers stressed some of hallmarks of FFA include the development of leadership skills, and opportunities explore different career paths. FFA competitions contribute to these efforts. 

Michelle Santiago, Ph.D., chair of UCM’s Department of Agriculture, was excited to be part of the event. She particularly appreciated all of the opportunities it provided for her university students to get involved.

“More than 50 of our current UCM agriculture and agriculture education students assisted with this year's contests by helping to raise or prepare contest materials, facilitating on site, and even helping to judge,” Santiago said. “About half of our UCM student volunteers participated in FFA in high school and were happy to give back to such a meaningful organization. For our UCM students new to this event, they were amazed to learn about the diverse opportunities for youth participating in the FFA. They were also glad to see these high schoolers on campus, having a great learning experience.  It is always meaningful when our students ask if we will host next year, as they would like to help again.”

Having grown up in Marshall, Missouri, Santiago fondly recalls what it was like to be in FFA and to participate in competitive events. She can relate well to the students' experience in Warrensburg.

“I competed in FFA contests on this campus. For me, working hard all year to compete in CDE's and being on the college campuses that hosted were some of the most memorable FFA events,” she said. “Wanting current FFA members and their teachers to have a wonderful UCM campus experience, and to really see some great university facilities, helped shaped the facilitation and interaction the Department of Agriculture wanted UCM to have with students and teachers at this year's event.”
 
According to the Missouri FFA website, it is estimated that nearly 26,000 high school and college-level students in the state are engaged in the organization and its six districts.  This includes students from about 70 different schools that are part of the district competition at UCM. Such events are part of many activities designed to help fulfill FFA’s vision for students to “achieve academic and personal growth, strengthen American agriculture and provide leadership to build healthy local communities, a strong nation and a sustainable world.”

Framed by trees lining a driveway at Prussing Farm, high school students could be seen testing their knowledge of soils during the FFA Central District Competition at UCM.