The Agricultural Proficiency Awards recognize FFA members who have excelled in their Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) and they’re among the highest awards an individual member can receive in FFA. Members first compete at the state level, then four state winners are selected as finalists for the National Proficiency Awards. With nearly 50 categories ranging from agricultural sales to forage production, there are opportunities for all members to be honored for their hard work.
In Session 3 of the 97th National FFA Convention & Expo, proficiency finalists from Agricultural Communications, Agricultural Sales, Agricultural Education, Agricultural Services, Service Learning and Agriscience Integrated Systems were recognized and the winners for each category were announced.
- In Agricultural Communications, the winner was Titus Montgomery from Red Bud FFA in Oklahoma.
- In Agricultural Sales Entrepreneurship, the winner was Gracie Sprague from Genoa-Penta FFA in Ohio.
- In Agricultural Sales Placement, the winner was Jack Schuster from Marshall FFA in Wisconsin.
- In Agricultural Education, the winner was Sophia Gomes from Tulare FFA in California.
- In Agricultural Services, the winner was Jeremy Eaton from Galt FFA in California.
- In Service Learning, the winner was Hayley Hines from Paola FFA in Kansas.
Each member’s project encompassed thousands of hours of hard work and commitment to the advancement of agriculture, as each member found a true passion for their projects and an opportunity to make a difference in their communities.
Hayley Hines was only a freshman when she recognized a food insecurity issue at her school, which inspired her to create Panthers Helping Panthers, an anonymous food pantry that later expanded to raise pigs and chickens to provide meat for families in need. Even though Hines was thrilled to win her award, she was quick to point out that the students were the main focus of her project.
“It’s about the students that I impacted. I think that’s what’s most important, because I did this to help make a difference in others’ lives,” she says.
Sophia Gomes began her project working with Ag Adventures, a local interactive children’s museum, and then went on to work as a classroom ambassador with the California Milk Advisory Board, the Hillary County Extension office and a year facilitating the Greenhand Leadership Conferences with California FFA.
“It’s been such an honor to work with my community and to work with these kids,” she says. “I think that winning an accomplishment like this is just such a cherry on top, it’s such a great way to end my time in FFA.”
Jack Schuster’s project started with a cash register job at the local Ace Hardware when he was a sophomore in high school, but he eventually worked his way up to being the storewide assistant manager and head of the paint department. Now a national champion, Schuster looks at this accomplishment as the perfect end to his FFA career.
“It feels amazing; it’s a great way to wrap up my time in FFA,” he says.
